BOSTON. 

U,  Wo.1®  C 


, 


,  THE 


TEACHER: 


MORAL    INFLUENCES 


EMPLOYED    IN    THE 


INSTRUCTION  AND  (TOVERNMENT  OF 

THE  YOUJVG; 


INTENDED  CHIEFLY  TO  ASSIST  YOUNG  TEACHERS  IN  ORGANIZING 
AND  CONDUCTING  THEIR  SCHOOLS. 


BY 

Late  Principal  of  O^fJ^rncln  raojiilfSa^ol,  Boston,  Masa. 


UNIVERSITY 


5OSTON: 
PUBLISHED    BY   WILLIAM  PEIRCE. 

No.    9.    CORNHILL. 

1834. 


Entered,  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1833,  by  WILLIAM 
PEIRCE,  in  the  Clerk's  Office  of  the  District  Court  of  the  District 
of  Massachusetts. 


STEREOTYPED  BY  LYMAN  THURSTON  *  CO. 
BOSTON. 


PRINTED   BY   WRIGHT  &   WEBSTER, 

No.  9  Cornhill Boston. 


TO  THE 

TRUSTEES   AND  PATRONS 
OF    THE 

MT.    VERNON    FEMALE    SCHOOL,   BOSTON. 

OEIVTLEMBlf: 

It  is  to  efforts  which  you  have  made  in  the  cause  of 
education,  with  special  regard  to  its  moral  and  religious 
aspects,  that  I  have  been  indebted  for  the  opportunity 
to  test  by  experiment,  under  the  most  pleasant  and 
favorable  circumstances,  the  principles  which  form  the 
basis  of  this  work.  To  you,  therefore,  it  is  respectfully 
inscribed,  as  one  of  the  indirect  results  of  your  own 
exertions  to  promote  the  best  interests  of  the  Young. 
I  am  very  sincerely  and  respectfully  yours, 

THE  AUTHOR. 


PREFACE. 


THIS  book  is  intended  to  detail,  in  a  familiar  and 
practical  manner,  a  system  of  arrangements  for  the  , or- 
ganization and  management  of  a  school,  based  on  the 
employment,  so  far  as  is  practicable,  of  Moral  Influences, 
as  a  means  of  effecting  the  objects  in  view.  Its  design  is, 
not  to  bring  forward  new  theories  or  new  plans,  but  to 
develope  and  explain,  and  to  carry  out  to  their  practical 
applications,  such  principles  as,  among  all  skilful  and 
experienced  teachers,  are  generally  admitted  and  acted 
upon.  Of  course  it  is  not  designed  for  the  skilful  and  the 
experienced  themselves;  but  it  is  intended  to  embody 
what  they  already  know,  and  to  present  it  in  a  practical 
form,  for  the  use  of  those  who  are  beginning  the  work  and 
who  wish  to  avail  themselves  of  the  experience  which 
others  have  acquired. 

Although  moral  influences,  are  the  chief  foundations 
on  which  the  power  of  the  teacher  over  the  minds  and 
hearts  of  his  pupils  is,  according  to  this  treatise,  to  rest, 
still  it  must  not  be  imagined  that  the  system  here  recom- 
mended is  one  of  persuasion.  It  is  a  system  of  authority, 
— supreme  and  unlimited  authority,  a  point  essential  in  all 
plans  for  the  supervision  of  the  young.  But  it  is  autho- 
rity secured  and  maintained  as  far  as  possible  by  moral 
measures.  There  will  be  no  dispute  about  the  propriety 
of  making  the  most  of  this  class  of  means.  Whatever 
difference  of  opinion  there  may  be,  on  the  question  wheth- 
er physical  force,  is  necessary  at  all,  every  one  will  agree 
that,  if  ever  employed,  it  must  be  only  as  a  last  resort, 
and  that  no  teacher  ought  to  make  war  upon  the  body, 
unless  it  is  proved  that  he  cannot  conquer  through  the 
medium  of  the  mind. 

1* 


VI  PREFACE* 

In  regard  to  the  anecdotes  and  narratives  which  are 
very  freely  introduced  to  illustrate  principles  in  this  work, 
the  writer  ought  to  state,  that  though  they  are  all  substan- 
tially true,  that  is,  all  except  those  which  are  expressly 
introduced  as  mere  suppositions,  he  has  not  hesitated  to 
alter  very  freely,  for  obvious  reasons,  the  unimportant  cir- 
cumstances connected  with  them.  He  has  endeavored 
thus  to  destroy  the  personality  of  the  narratives,  without 
injuring  or  altering  their  moral  effect. 

From  the  very  nature  of  our  employment,  and  of  the 
circumstances  under  which  the  preparation  for  it  must  be 
made,  it  is  plain  that,  of  the  many  thousands  who  are,  in 
the  United  States,  annually  entering  the  work,  a  very 
large  majority  must  depend  for  all  their  knowledge  of 
the  art  except  what  they  acquire  from  their  own  observa- 
tion and  experience,  on  what  they  can  obtain  from  books. 
It  is  desirable  that  the  class  of  works  from  which  such 
knowledge  can  be  obtained  should  be  increased.  Some 
excellent  and  highly  useful  specimens  have  already  ap- 
peared, and  very  many  more  would  be  eagerly  read  by 
teachers,  if  properly  prepared.  It  is  essential  however 
that  they  should  be  written  by  experienced  teachers,  who 
have  for  some  years  been  actively  engaged,  and  specially 
interested  in  the  work; — that  they  should  be  written  in  a 
very  practical  and  familiar  style, — and  that  they  should 
exhibit  principles  which  are  unquestionably  true,  and  gen- 
erally admitted  by  good  teachers,  and  not  the  new  the- 
ories peculiar  to  the  writer  himself.  In  a  word,  utility, 
and  practical  effect,  should  be  the  only  aim. 

Boston,  June  20, 1833, 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER  I.— INTEREST  IN  TEACHING. 

Source  of  enjoyment  in  teaching.  The  boy  and  the  steam  engine.  His 
contrivance.  His  pleasure,  and  the  source  of  it.  Firing  at  the  mark. 
Plan  of  clearing  the  galleries  in  the  British  House  of  Commons. 
Pleasure  of  experimenting,  and  exercising  intellectual  and  moral 
power.  The  indifferent,  and  inactive  teacher.  His  subsequent  ex- 
periments; means  of  awakening  interest.  Offences  of  pupils.  Dif- 
ferent ways  of  regarding  them. 

Teaching  really  attended  with  peculiar  trials  and  difficulties.  1.  Moral 
responsibility  for  the  conduct  of  pupils.  2.  Multiplicity  of  the  ob- 
iects  of  attention,  -  -  Page  11 


CHAPTER  II.— GENERAL  ARRANGEMENTS. 

Objects  to  be  aimed  at,  in  the  General  Arrangements.  Systematising 
the  teacher's  work.  Necessity  of  having  only  one  thing  to  attend  to 
at  a  time. 

1.  Whispering  and  leaving  seats.     An  experiment.     Method  of  regu- 
lating this.     Introduction  of  the  new  plan.     Difficulties,     Dialogue 
with  pupils.     Study  card.     Construction  and  use. 

2.  Mending  pens.     Unnecessary  trouble  from  this  source.     Degree  of 
importance  to  be  attached  to  good  pens.     Plan  for  providing  them. 

3.  Answering  questions.    Evils.    Each  pupil's  fair  proportion  of  time. 
Questions  about  lessons.     When  the  teacher  should  refuse  to  answer 
them.     Rendering  assistance.     When  to  be  refused. 

4.  Hearing  recitations.     Regular  arrangement  of  them.     Punctuality. 
Plan  and  schedule.     General  Exercises.     Subjects  to  be  attended  to 
at  them. 

General  arrangements  of  Government.  Power  to  be  delegated  to  pn- 
pils.  Gardiner  Lyceum.  Its  government.  The  trial.  Real  repub- 
lican government  impracticable  in  schools.  Delegated  power.  Ex- 
periment with  the  writing  books.  Quarrel  about  the  nail.  Offices 
for  pupils.  Cautions.  Danger  of  insubordination.  New  plans  to 
be  introduced  gradually.  ..._...  29 


Vlll  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  III.— INSTRUCTION. 

The  three  important  branches.  The  objects  which  are  really  most  im- 
portant. Advanced  scholars.  Examination  of  school  and  scholars 
at  the  outset.  Acting  on  numbers.  Extent  to  which  it  may  be  car- 
ried. Recitation  and  Instruction. 

1.  Recitation.     Its  object.     Importance  of  a  thorough  examination  of 
the  class.     Various  modes.     Perfect  regularity  and  order  necessary. 
Example.     Story  of  the  pencils.     Time  wasted  by  too  minute  an  at- 
tention to  individuals.     Example.     Answers  given  simultaneously  to 
save  time.     Excuses.     Dangers  in  simultaneous  recitation.     Means 
of  avoiding  them.     Advantages  of  this  mode.     Examples.     Written 
answers. 

2.  Instruction.     Means  of  exciting   interest.      Variety.      Examples. 
Showing  the  connexion  between  the  studies  of  school  and  the  busi- 
ness of  life.     Example,  from  the  controversy  between  General  and 
State  Governments.     Mode  of  illustrating  it.     Proper  way  of  meet- 
ing difficulties.     Leading  pupils  to  surmount  them.     True  way  to 
encourage  the  young  to  meet  difficulties.      The  boy  and  the  wheel- 
barrow.    Difficult  examples  in  Arithmetic. 

Proper  way  of  rendering  assistance.  (1.)  Simply  analyzing  intricate 
subjects.  Dialogue  on  longitude.  (2.)  Making  previous  truths 
perfectly  familiar.  Experiment  with  the  Multiplication  table.  La- 
tin Grammar  lesson.  Geometry. 

3.  General  cautions.     Doing  work  for  the  scholar.     Dulness.     Inte- 
rest in  all  the  pupils.     Making  all  alike.     Faults  of  pupils.     The 
teacher's  own  mental  habits.     False  pretensions.         ... 


64 


CHAPTER  IV.— MORAL  DISCIPLINE. 

First  impressions.  Story.  Danger  of  devoting  too  much  attention  to 
individual  instances.  The  profane  boy.  Case  described.  Confession 
of  the  boys.  Success.  The  untidy  desk.  Measures  in  consequence. 
Interesting  the  scholars  in  the  good  order  of  the  school.  Securing  a 
majority.  Example.  Reports  about  the  desks.  The  new  College 
building.  Modes  of  interesting  the  boys.  The  irregular  class.  Two 
ways  of  remedying  the  evil.  Boys*  love  of  system  and  regularity. 
Object  of  securing  a  majority,  and  particular  means  of  doing  it. 
Making  school  pleasant.  Discipline  should  generally  be  private.  In 
all  cases  that  are  brought  before  the  school,  public  opinion  in  the 
teacher's  favor  should  be  secured.  Story  of  the  rescue.  Feelings 
of  displeasure  against  what  is  wrong.  The  teacher  under  moral  ob- 
ligation, and  governed,  himself,  by  law.  Description  of  the  Moral 
Exercise.  Prejudice.  The  scholars'  written  remarks,  and  the 
teacher's  comments.  The  spider.  List  of  subjects.  Anonymous 
writing.  Specimens.  Marks  of  a  bad  scholar.  Consequences  of 
being  behindhand.  New  scholars.  A  Satirical  spirit.  Variety. 

Treatment  of  individual  offenders.  Ascertaining  who  they  are.  Stu- 
dying their  characters.  Securing  their  personal  attachment.  Asking 
assistance.  The  whistle.  Open,  frank  dealing.  Example.  Dia- 
logue with  James.  Communications  in  writing.  ...  105 


CONTENTS  IX 


CHAPTER  V. — RELIGIOUS  INFLUENCE. 

The  American  mechanic  at  Paris.  A  congregational  teacher  among 
Quakers.  Parents  have  the  ultimate  right  to  decide  how  their  chil- 
dren shall  be  educated. 

Agreement  in  religious  opinion,  in  this  country.  Principle  which  is  to 
guide  the  teacher  on  this  subject.  Limits  and  restrictions  to  religious 
influence  in  school.  Religious  truths  which  are  generally  admitted 
in  this  country.  The  existence  of  God.  Human  responsibility. 
Immortality  of  the  soul.  A  revelation.  Nature  of  piety.  Salva- 
tion by  Christ.  Teacher  to  do  nothing  on  this  subject  but  what  he 
may  do  by  the  common  consent  of  his  employers.  Reasons  for  ex- 
plaining distinctly  these  limits. 

Particular  measures  proposed.  Opening  exercises.  Prayer.  Sing- 
ing. Direct  instruction.  Mode  of  giving  it.  Example;  arrange- 
ment of  the  Epistles  in  the  New  Testament.  Dialogue.  Another 
example;  scene  in  the  woods.  Cautions.  Affected  simplicity  of 
language.  Evils  of  it.  Minute  details.  Example  ;  motives  to 
study.  Dialogue.  Mingling  religious  influence  with  the  direct  dis- 
cipline of  the  school.  Fallacious  indications  of  piety.  Sincerity  of 
the  Teacher. 152 


CHAPTER  VI.— MT,  VERNON  SCHOOL. 

Reason  for  inserting  the  description.     Advantage  of  visiting  schools; 
and  of  reading  descriptions  of  them.     Addressed  to  a  new  scholar. 

1.  Her  personal   duty.     Study   card.     Rule.     But  one  rule.     Cases 
when  this  rule  may  be  waived.     1.  At  the  direction  of  teachers. 
2.  On  extraordinary  emergencies.     Reasons  for  the  rule.     Anecdote. 
Punishments.     Incident  described.     Confession, 

2.  Order  of  Daily  Exercises.     Opening  of  the   school.       Schedules. 
Hours  of  study  and  recess.     General  Exercises,     Business.     Exam- 
ples.    Sections. 

3.  Instruction  and  supervision  of  pupils.      Classes.      Organization. 
Sections.     Duties  of  superintendents. 

4.  Officers.     Design  in  appointing  them.     Their  names  and  duties. 
Example  of  the  operation  of  the  system, 

5.  The  Court.     Its  plan  and  design.     A  trial  described. 

6.  Religious    Instruction.     Principles    inculcated.     Measures.     Reli- 
gious exercises  in  school.     Meeting  on  Saturday  afternoon.     Con- 
cluding remarks.  „---.....          181 


CHAPTER  VII.— SCHEMING. 

Time  lost  upon  fruitless  schemes.  Proper  province  of  ingenuity  and 
enterprise.  Cautions.  Case  supposed.  The  spelling  class;  an  ex- 
periment with  it;  its  success  and  its  consequences.  System  of  lite- 
rary institutions  in  this  country.  Directions  to  a  young  teacher  on 


X  CONTENTS. 

the  subject  of  forming  new  plans.  New  institutions ;  new  school 
books.  Ingenuity  and  enterprise  very  useful,  within  proper  limits. 
Ways  of  making  known  new  plans.  Periodicals.  Family  news- 
papers. Teacher's  meetings. 

Rights  of  Committees,  Trustees,  or  Patrons,  in  the  control  of  the 
school.  Principle  which  ought  to  govern.  Case  supposed.  Extent 
to  which  the  teacher  is  bound  by  the  wishes  of  his  employers.  221 


CHAPTER  VIII.— REPORTS  OF  CASES. 

Plan  of  the  Chapter.  Hats  and  Bonnets.  Injury  to  clothes.  Mis- 
takes which  are  not  censurable.  Tardiness ;  plan  for  punishing  it. 
Helen's  lesson.  Firmness  in  measures  united  with  mildness  of  man- 
ner. Insincere  confession:  scene  in  a  class.  Court.  Trial  of  a 
case.  Teacher's  personal  character.  The  way  to  elevate  the  cha- 
racter of  the  employment.  Six  hours  only  to  be  devoted  to  school. 
The  Chestnut  Burr.  Scene  in  the  wood.  Dialogue  in  school.  An 
experiment.  Series  of  Lessons  in  writing.  The  correspondence. 
Two  kinds  of  management.  Plan  of  weekly  reports.  The  shopping 
exercise.  Example.  Artifices  in  Recitations.  Keeping  Resolu- 
tions; notes  of  Teacher's  Lecture.  Topics.  Plan  and  illustration 
of  the  exercise.  Introduction  of  music.  Tabu.  Mental  Analysis. 
Scene  in  a  class.  .....---  242 


OF  THE 

tnOVEESITY 


THE  TEACHER. 


CHAPTER    I. 

INTEREST    IN    TEACHING. 

THERE  is  a  most  singular  contrariety  of  opinion  prevail- 
ing in  the  community,  in  regard  to  the  pleasantness  of  the 
business  of  teaching.  Some  teachers  go  to  their  daily 
task,  merely  upon  compulsion:  they  regard  it  as  intoler- 
able drudgery.  Others  love  the  work:  they  hover  around 
the  school-room  as  long  as  they  can,  and  never  cease  to 
think,  and  seldom  to  talk,  of  their  delightful  labors. 

Unfortunately  there  are  too  many  of  the  former  class, 
and  the  first  object,  which,  in  this  work,  I  shall  attempt 
to  accomplish,  is  to  show  my  readers,  especially  those 
who  have  been  accustomed  to  look  upon  the  business  of 
teaching  as  a  weary  and  heartless  toil,  how  it  happens, 
that  it  is,  in  any  case,  so  pleasant.  The  human  mind  is 
always,  essentially,  the  same.  That  which  is  tedious  and 
joyless  to  one,  will  be  so  to  another,  if  pursued  in  the  same 
way,  and  under  the  same  circumstances.  And  teaching, 
if  it  is  pleasant,  animating,  and  exciting  to  one,  may  be  so 
to  all. 

I  am  met,  however,  at  the  outset,  in  my  effort  to  show 
why  it  is  that  teaching  is  ever  a  pleasant  work,  by  the 
want  of  a  name  for  a  certain  faculty  or  capacity  of  the 
human  mind,  through  which  most  of  the  enjoyment  of 
teaching  finds  its  avenue.  Every  mind  is  so  constituted 
as  to  take  a  positive  pleasure  in  the  exercise  of  ingenuity 
in  adapting  means  to  an  end,  and  in  watching  their  ope- 
ration;— in  accomplishing  by  the  intervention  of  instru- 
ments, what  we  could  not  accomplish  without; — in  devis- 
ing, (when  we  see  an  object  to  be  effected,  which  is  too 
great  for  our  direct  and  immediate  power)  and  setting  at 


12  INTEREST   IN   TEACHING. 

work,  some  instrumentality,  which  may  be  sufficient  to 
accomplish  it. 

It  is  said,  that,  when  the  steam  engine  was  first  put  in- 
to operation,  such  was  the  imperfection  of  the  machinery, 
that  a  boy  was  necessarily  stationed  at  it,  to  open  and 
shut  alternately  the  cock,  by  which  the  steam  was  now 
admitted,  and  now  shut  out,  from  the  cylinder.  One 
such  boy,  after  patiently  doing  his  work  for  many  days, 
contrived  to  connect  this  stop-cock  with  some  of  the  mov- 
ing parts  of  the  engine,  by  a  wire,  in  such  a  manner,  that 
the  engine  itself  did  the  work  which  had  been  entrusted 
to  him;  and  after  seeing  that  the  whole  business  would 
go  regularly  forward,  he  left  the  wire  in  charge,  and  went 
away  to  play. 

Such  is  the  story.  Now  if  it  is  true,  how  much  pleasure 
the  boy  must  have  experienced,  in  devising  and  witnessing 
the  successful  operation  of  his  scheme;  I  do  not  mean 
the  pleasure  of  relieving  himself  from  a  dull  and  weari- 
some duty;  I  do  not  mean  the  pleasure  of  anticipated 
play;  but  I  mean  the  strong  interest  he  must  have  taken 
in  contriving  and  executing  his  plan.  When,  wearied  out 
with  his  dull,  monotonous  work,  he  first  noticed  those 
movements  of  the  machinery  which  he  thought  adapted  to 
his  purpose,  and  the  plan  flashed  into  his  mind,  how  must 
his  eye  have  brightened,  and  how  quick  must  the  weary 
listlessness  of  his  employment  have  vanished.  While  he 
was  maturing  his  plan,  and  carrying  it  into  execution; — 
while  adjusting  his  wires,  fitting  them  to  the  exact  length, 
and  to  the  exact  position, — and  especially,  when,  at  last, 
he  watches  the  first  successful  operation  of  his  contri- 
vance,— he  must  have  enjoyed  a  pleasure,  which  very  few, 
even  of  the  joyous  sports  of  childhood,  could  have  sup- 
plied. 

It  is  not,  however,  exactly  the  pleasure  of  exercising 
ingenuity  in  contrivance,  that  I  refer  to  here;  for  the 
teacher  has  not,  after  all,  a  great  deal  of  absolute  contriv- 
ing to  do,  —  or  rather  his  principal  business  is  not  con- 
triving. The  greatest  and  most  permanent  source  of 
pleasure  to  the  boy,  in  such  a  case  as  I  have  described,  is  his 
feeling  that  he  is  accomplishing  a  great  effect  by  a  slight 


INTEREST    Ittf   TEACHING.  13 

effort  of  his  own;  the  feeling  of  power;  acting  through  the 
intervention  of  instrumentality,  so  as  to  multiply  his  power. 
So  great  would  be  this  satisfaction,  that  he  would  almost 
wish  to  have  some  other  similar  work  assigned  him,  that 
he  might  have  another  opportunity  to  contrive  some  plan 
for  its  easy  accomplishment. 

Looking  at  an  object  to  be  accomplished,  or  an  evil  to 
be  remedied,  then  studying  its  nature  and  extent,  and  de- 
vising and  executing  some  means  for  effecting  the  pur- 
pose desired,  is,  in  all  cases,  a  source  of  pleasure;  especial- 
ly when,  by  the  process,  we  bring  to  view  or  to  operation, 
new  powers,  or  powers  heretofore  hidden,  whether  they 
are  our  own  powers,  or  those  of  objects  upon  which  we 
act.  Experimenting  has  a  sort  of  magical  fascination 
for  all.  Some  do  not  like  the  trouble  of  making  prepara- 
tions, but  all  are  eager  to  see  the  results.  Contrive  a 
new  machine,  and  every  body  will  be  interested  to  wit- 
ness, or  to  hear  of  its  operation; — develope  any  heretofore 
unknown  properties  of  matter,  or  secure  some  new  useful 
effect,  from  laws  which  men  have  not  hitherto  employed 
for  their  purposes,  and  the  interest  of  all  around  you  will 
be  excited  to  observe  your  results; — and  especially,  you 
will  yourself  take  a  deep  and  permanent  pleasure,  in 
guiding  and  controlling  the  power  you  have  thus  obtained. 

This  is  peculiarly  the  case  with  experiments  upon  mind, 
or  experiments  for  producing  effects  through  the  medium 
of  voluntary  acts  of  the  human  mind,  so  that  the  contri- 
ver must  take  into  consideration  the  laws  of  mind  in  form- 
ing his  plans.  To  illustrate  this  by  rather  a  childish 
case:  I  once  knew  a  boy  who  was  employed  by  his 
father  to  remove  all  the  loose  small  stones,  which,  from  the 
peculiar  nature  of  the  ground,  had  accumulated  in  the 
road  before  the  house.  He  was  to  take  them  up,  and 
throw  them  over  into  the  pasture,  across  the  way.  He 
soon  got  tired  of  picking  them  up  one  by  one,  and  sat 
down  upon  the  bank,  to  try  to  devise  some  better  means 
of  accomplishing  his  work.  He  at  length  conceived  and 
adopted  the  following  plan.  He  set  up,  in  the  pasture, 
a  narrow  board,  for  a  target,  or  as  boys  would  call  it,  ft 
mark, —  and  then,  collecting  all  the  boys  of  the  neighbor> 


14  INTEREST   IN     TEACHING. 

hood,  he  proposed  to  them  an  amusement,  which  boys  are 
always  ready  for, — firing  at  a  mark.  I  need  not  say  that 
the  stores  of  ammunition  in  the  street  were  soon  exhausted; 
the  boys  working  for  their  leader,  when  they  supposed 
they  were  only  finding  amusement  for  themselves. 

Here  now,  is  experimenting  upon  the  mind; — the  pro- 
duction of  useful  effect  with  rapidity  and  ease,  by  the  in- 
tervention of  proper  instrumentality; — the  conversion,  by 
means  of  a  little  knowledge  of  human  nature,  of  that 
which  would  have  otherwise  been  dull  and  fatiguing  la- 
bor, into  a  most  animating  sport,  giving  pleasure  to  twenty, 
instead  of  tedious  labor  to  one.  Now  the  contrivance  and 
execution  of  such  plans  is  a  source  of  positive  pleasure; 
it  is  always  pleasant  to  bring  the  properties  and  powers  of 
matter  into  requisition  to  promote  our  designs, — but  there 
is  a  far  higher  pleasure  in  controlling,  and  guiding,  and 
moulding  to  our  purpose  the  movements  of  mind. 

It  is  this  which  gives  interest  to  the  plans  and  opera- 
tion of  human  governments.  They  can  do  little  by  actual 
force.  Nearly  all  the  power  that  is  held,  even  by  the  most 
despotic  executive,  must  be  based  on  an  adroit  manage- 
ment of  the  principles  of  human  nature,  so  as  to  lead  men 
voluntarily  to  cooperate  with  the  ruler,  in  his  plans. 
Even  an  arrny  could  not  be  got  into  battle,  in  many 
cases,  without  a  most  ingenious  arrangement,  by  means 
of  which  half  a  dozen  men  can  drive,  literally  drive,  as 
many  thousands,  into  the  very  face  of  danger  and  death. 
The  difficulty  of  leading  men  to  battle  must  have  been 
for  a  long  time  a  very  perplexing  one  to  generals.  It  was 
at  last  removed  by  the  very  simple  expedient  of  creating 
a  greater  danger  behind  than  there  is  before.  Without 
ingenuity  of  contrivance  like  this, — turning  one  principle 
of  human  nature  against  another,  and  making  it  for  the 
momentary  interest  of  men  to  act  in  a  given  way,  no  gov- 
ernment could  stand  a  year. 

I  know  of  nothing  which  illustrates  more  perfectly  the 
way  by  which  a  knowledge  of  human  nature  is  to  be 
turned  to  account  in  managing  human  minds,  than  a 
plan  which  was  adopted  for  clearing  the  galleries  of  the 
British  House  of  Commons,  as  it  was  described  to  me  by 


vo         1^ 

EH  SIT1 

INTEREST     IN    TEACHING.  15 

a  gentleman  who  had  visited  London.  It  is  well  known 
that  the  gallery  is  appropriated  to  spectators,  and  that  it 
sometimes  becomes  necessary  to  order  them  to  retire,  when 
a  vote  is  to  be  taken,  or  private  business  is  to  be  transact- 
ed. When  the  officer  in  attendance  was  ordered  to  clear 
the  gallery,  it  was  sometimes  found  to  be  a  very  trouble- 
some and  slow  operation;  for  those  who  first  went  out, 
remained  obstinately  as  close  to  the  doors  as  possible,  so  as 
to  secure  the  opportunity  to  come  in  again  first,  when  the 
doors  should  be  re-opened.  The  consequence  was,  there 
was  so  great  an  accumulation  around  the  doors  outside, 
that  it  was  almost  impossible  for  the  crowd  to  get  out. 
The  whole  difficulty  arose  from  the  eager  desire  of  every 
one  to  remain  as  near  as  possible  to  the  door,  through 
which  they  were  to  come  back  again.  I  have  been  told,  that, 
notwithstanding  the  utmost  efforts  of  the  officers,  fifteen 
minutes  were  sometimes  consumed  in  effecting  the  object, 
when  the  order  was  given  that  the  spectators  should  retire. 

The  whole  difficulty  was  removed  by  a  very  simple 
plan.  One  door  only  was  opened  when  the  crowd  was  to 
retire,  and  they  were  then  admitted  through  the  other. 
The  consequence  was,  that  as  soon  as  the  order  was  given 
to  clear  the  galleries,  every  one  fled  as  fast  as  possible 
through  the  open  door  around  to  the  one  which  was  clos- 
ed, so  as  to  be  ready  to  enter  first,  when  that,  in  its  turn, 
should  be  opened;  this  was  usually  in  a  few  minutes,  as 
the  purpose  for  which  the  spectators  were  ordered  to  re- 
tire was  usually  simply  to  allow  time  for  taking  a  vote. 
Here  it  will  be  seen  that  by  the  operation  of  a  very  simple 
plan,  the  very  eagerness  of  the  crowd  to  get  back  as  soon 
as  possible,  which  had  been  the  sole  cause  of  the  difficulty, 
was  turned  to  account  most  effectually  to  remove  it.  Be- 
fore, they  were  so  eager  to  return,  that  they  crowded 
around  the  door  so  as  to  prevent  others  going  out.  But  by 
this  simple  plan  of  ejecting  them  by  one  door,  and  admit- 
ting them  by  another,  that  very  circumstance  made  them 
clear  the  passage  at  once,  and  hurried  every  one  awaj 
into  the  lobby,  the  moment  the  command  was  given. 

The  planner  of  this  scheme  must  have  taken  great 
pleasure  in  seeing  its  successful  operation;  though  the 


16  INTEREST    IN    TEACHING. 

officer  who  should  go  steadily  on,  endeavoring  to  remove 
the  reluctant  throng  by  dint  of  mere  driving,  might  well 
have  found  his  task  unpleasant.  But  the  exercise  of 
ingenuity  in  studying  the  nature  of  the  difficulty  with 
which  a  man  has  to  contend,  and  bringing  in  some  antag- 
onist principle  of  human  nature  to  remove  it,  or  if  not  an 
antagonist  principle,  a  similar  principle,  operating,  by  a 
peculiar  arrangement  of  circumstances,  in  an  antagonist 
manner,  is  always  pleasant.  From  this  source  a  large 
share  of  the  enjoyment  which  men  find  in  the  active  pur- 
suits of  life,  has  its  origin. 

The  teacher  has  the  whole  field,  which  this  subject 
opens,  fully  before  him.  He  has  human  nature  to  deal 
with,  most  directly.  His  whole  work  is  experimenting 
upon  mind;  and  the  mind  which  is  before  him  to  be  the 
subject  of  his  operation,  is  exactly  in  the  state  to  be  most 
easily  and  pleasantly  operated  upon.  The  reason  now 
why  some  teachers  find  their  work  delightful,  and  some 
find  it  wearisomeness  and  tedium  itself,  is  that  some 
do,  and  some  do  not  take  this  view  of  their  work.  One 
instructer  is  like  the  engine-boy,  turning  without  cessa- 
tion or  change,  his  everlasting  stop-cock,  in  the  same 
ceaseless,  mechanical,  and  monotonous  routine.  Another 
is  like  the  little  workman  in  his  brighter  moments,  fixing 
his  invention  and  watching  with  delight  its  successful 
and  easy  accomplishment  of  his  wishes.  One  is  like  the 
officer,  driving  by  vociferations  and  threats,  and  demon- 
strations of  violence,  the  spectators  from  the  galleries. 
The  other,  like  the  shrewd  contriver,  who  converts  the 
very  cause  which  was  the  whole  ground  of  the  difficulty, 
to  a  most  successful  and  efficient  means  of  its  removal. 

These  principles  show  how  teaching  may,  in  some  cases, 
be  a  delightful  employment,  while  in  others,  its  tasteless 
dulness  is  interrupted  by  nothing  but  its  perplexities  and 
cares.  The  school-room  is  in  reality,  a  little  empire  of 
mind.  If  the  one  who  presides  in  it,  sees  it  in  its  true 
light;  studies  the  nature  and  tendency  of  the  minds 
which  he  has  to  control;  adapts  his  plans  and  his  meas- 
ures to  the  laws  of  human  nature,  and  endeavors  to  ac- 
complish his  purposes  for  them,  not  by  mere  labor  and 


INTEREST    IN    TEACHING.  17 

force,  but  by  ingenuity  and  enterprise;  he  will  take  pleas- 
ure in  administering  his  little  government.  He  will 
watch,  with  care  and  interest,  the  operation  of  the  moral 
and  intellectual  causes  which  he  sets  in  operation;  and 
find,  as  he  accomplishes  his  various  objects  with  increasing 
facility  and  power,  that  he  will  derive  a  greater  and  greater 
pleasure  from  his  work. 

Now  when  a  teacher  thus  looks  upon  his  school  as  a 
field  in  which  he  is  to  exercise  skill  and  ingenuity  and 
enterprise;  when  he  studies  the  laws  of  human  nature, 
and  the  character  of  those  minds  upon  which  he  has  to 
act;  when  he  explores  deliberately  the  nature  of  the  field 
which  he  has  to  cultivate,  and  of  the  objects  which  he 
wishes  to  accomplish;  and  applies  means,  judiciously  and 
skilfully  adapted  to  the  object ;  he  must  necessarily  take 
a  strong  interest  in  his  work.  But  when,  on  the  other 
hand,  he  goes  to  his  employment,  only  to  perform  a  cer- 
tain regular  round  of  daily  work,  undertaking  nothing, 
and  anticipating  nothing  but  this  dull  and  unchangeable 
routine ;  and  when  he  looks  upon  his  pupils  merely  as  pas- 
sive objects  of  his  labors,  whom  he  is  to  treat  with  simple 
indiffererico  while  they  obey  his  commands,  and  to  whom 
he  is  only  to  apply  reproaches  and  punishment  when  they 
disobey;  such  a  teacher  never  can  take  pleasure  in  the 
school.  Weariness  and  dulness  must  reign  in  both  mas- 
ter and  scholars,  when  things,  as  he  imagines,  are  going 
right :  and  mutual  anger  and  crimination,  when  they  go 
wrong. 

Scholars  never  can  be  instructed  by  the  power  of  any 
dull  mechanical  routine ;  nor  can  they  be  governed  by  the 
blind,  naked  strength  of  the  master;  such  means  must  fail 
of  the  accomplishment  of  the  purposes  designed,  and  con- 
sequently the  teacher  who  tries  such  a  course  must  have 
constantly  upon  his  mind  the  discouraging,  disheartening 
burden  of  unsuccessful  and  almost  useless  labor.  He  is 
continually  uneasy,  dissatisfied  and  filled  with  anxious 
cares;  and  sources  of  vexation  and  perplexity  continually 
arise.  He  attempts  to  remove  evils  by  waging  against 
them  a  useless  and  most  vexatious  warfare  of  threaten- 
ing and  punishment;  and  he  is  trying  continually  to  drive, 


18  INTEREST    IN    TEACHING. 

when  he  might  know  that  neither  the  intellect  nor  the 
heart  are  capable  of  being  driven. 

I  will  simply  state  one  case,  to  illustrate  what  I  mean 
by  the  difference  between  blind  force,  and  active  ingenuity 
and  enterprise,  in  the  management  of  school.  I  once  knew 
the  teacher  of  a  school,  who  made  it  his  custom  to  have 
writing  attended  to  in  the  afternoon.  The  boys  were  ac- 
customed to  take  their  places,  at  the  appointed  hour,  and 
each  one  would  stick  up  his  pen  in  the  front  of  his  desk 
for  the  teacher  to  pass  around  and  mend  them.  The 
teacher  would  accordingly  pass  around,  mending  the  pens 
from  desk  to  desk,  thus  enabling  the  boys,  in  succession, 
to  begin  their  task.  Of  course  each  boy  before  he  came 
to  his  desk  was  necessarily  idle,  and,  almost  necessarily, 
in  mischief.  Day  after  day  the  teacher  went  through 
this  regular  routine.  He  sauntered  slowly  and  listlessly 
*  through  the  aisles,  and  among  the  benches  of  the  room, 
wherever  he  saw  the  signal  of  a  pen.  He  paid  of  course 
very  little  attention  to  the  writing,  now  and  then  reprov- 
ing, with  an  impatient  tone,  some  extraordinary  instance 
of  carelessness,  or  leaving  his  work  to  suppress  some  ris- 
ing disorder.  Ordinarily,  however,  he  seemed  to  be  lost 
in  vacancy  of  thought, — dreaming  perhaps  of  other  scenes, 
or  inwardly  repining  at  the  eternal  monotony  and  tedium 
of  a  teacher's  life.  His  boys  took  no  interest  in  their 
work,  and  of  course  made  no  progress.  They  were  some- 
times unnecessarily  idle,  and  sometimes  mischievous,  but 
never  usefully  or  pleasantly  employed ;  for  the  whole  hour 
was  past  before  the  pens  could  all  be  brought  down.  Wast- 
ed time,  blotted  books,  and  fretted  tempers,  were  all  the 
results  which  the  system  produced. 

The  same  teacher  afterwards  acted  on  a  very  different 
principle.  He  looked  over  the  field  and  said  to  himself, 
what  are  the  objects  I  wish  to  accomplish  in  this  writing 
exercise,  and  how  can  I  best  accomplish  them?  I  wish 
to  obtain  the  greatest  possible  amount  of  industrious 
and  careful  practice  in  writing.  The  first  thing  evidently 
is,  to  save  the  wasted  time.  He  accordingly  made  pre- 
paration for  mending  the  pens  at  a  previous  hour,  so 
that  all  should  be  ready,  at  the  appointed  time,  to  com- 


INTEREST    IN   TEACHING.  19 

mence  the  work  together.  This  could  be  done  quite  as 
conveniently  when  the  boys  were  engaged  in  studying,  by 
requesting  them  to  put  out  their  pens  at  an  appointed  and 
previous  time.  He  sat  at  his  table,  and  the  pens  of  a  whole 
bench  were  brought  to  him,  and,  after  being  carefully  mend- 
ed, were  returned,  to  be  in  readiness  for  the  writing  hour. 
Thus  the  first  difficulty,  the  loss  of  time,  was  obviated. 

"  I  must  make  them  industrious  while  they  write,"  was 
his  next  thought.  After  thinking  of  a  variety  of  meth- 
ods, he  determined  to  try  the  following.  He  required  all 
to  begin  together  at  the  top  of  the  page  and  write  the 
same  line,  in  a  hand  of  the  same  size.  They  were  all  re- 
quired to  begin  together,  he  himself  beginning  at  the  same 
time,  and  writing  about  as  fast  as  he  thought  they  ought 
to  write,  in  order  to  secure  the  highest  improvement. 
When  he  had  finished  his  line,  he  ascertained  how  many 
had  preceded  him,  and  how  many  were  behind.  He  re- 
quested the  first  to  write  slower,  and  the  others  faster, 
and  by  this  means,  after  a  few  trials,  he  secured  uniform, 
regular,  systematic  and  industrious  employment,  through- 
out the  school.  Probably  there  were,  at  first,  difficulties 
in  the  operation  of  the  plan,  which  he  had  to  devise  ways 
and  means  to  surmount:  but  what  I  mean  to  present 
particularly  to  the  reader  is,  that  he  was  interested  in  his 
experiments.  While  sitting  in  his  desk,  giving  his  com- 
mand to  begin  line  after  line,  and  noticing  the  unbroken 
silence,  and  attention,  and  interest,  which  prevailed,  (for 
each  boy  was  interested  to  see  how  nearly  with  the  mas- 
ter he  could  finish  his  work,)  while  presiding  over  such 
a  scene,  he  must  have  been  interested.  He  must  have 
been  pleased  with  the  exercise  of  his  almost  military  com- 
mand, and  to  witness  how  effectually  order  and  industry, 
and  excited  and  pleased  attention,  had  taken  the  place  of 
listless  idleness  and  mutual  dissatisfaction. 

After  a  few  days,  he  appointed  one  of  the  older  and 
more  judicious  scholars,  to  give  the  word  for  beginning 
and  ending  the  lines,  and  he  sat  surveying  the  scene,  or 
walking  from  desk  to  desk,  noticing  faults,  and  consider- 
ing what  plans  he  could  form  for  securing,  more  and  more 
fully,  the  end  he  had  in  view  He  found  that  the  great 


20  INTEREST     IN     TEACHING. 

object  of  interest  and  attention  among  the  boys  was,  to 
come  out  right,  and  that  less  pains  were  taken  with  the 
formation  of  the  letters,  than  there  ought  to  be,  to  secure 
the  most  rapid  improvement. 

But  how  shall  he  secure  greater  pains?  By  stern 
commands  and  threats?  By  going  from  desk  to  desk, 
scolding  one,  rapping  the  knuckles  of  another,  and  hold- 
ing up  to  ridicule  a  third,  making  examples  of  such  indi- 
viduals as  may  chance  to  attract  his  special  attention? 
No ;  he  has  learned  that  he  is  operating  upon  a  little  em- 
pire of  mind,  and  that  he  is  not  to  endeavor  to  drive  them 
as  a  man  drives  a  herd,  by  mere  peremptory  command  or 
half  angry  blows.  He  must  study  the  nature  of  the  effect 
he  is  to  produce,  and  of  the  materials  upon  which  he  is 
to  work,  and  adopt,  after  mature  deliberation,  a  plan  to 
accomplish  his  purpose,  founded  upon  the  principles  which 
ought  always  to  regulate  the  action  of  mind  upon  mind, 
and  adapted  to  produce  the  intellectual  effect,  which  he 
wishes  to  accomplish. 

In  the  case  supposed,  the  teacher  concluded  to  appeal 
to  emulation.  While  I  describe  the  measure  he  adopt- 
ed, let  it  be  remembered  that  I  am  now  only  approving  of 
the  resort  to  ingenuity  and  invention,  and  the  employ- 
ment of  moral  and  intellectual  means,  for  the  accomplish- 
ment of  his  purposes,  and  not  of  the  measures  themselves. 
I  do  not  think  the  plan  I  am  going  to  describe  a  wise  one ; 
but  I  do  think  that  the  teacher,  while  trying  it,  must 
have  been  interested  in  his  intellectual  experiment.  His 
business,  while  pursued  in  such  a  way,  could  not  have 
been  a  mere  dull  and  uninteresting  routine. 

He  purchased,  for  three  cents  apiece,  two  long  lead-pen- 
cils, an  article  of  great  value,  in  the  opinion  of  the  boys 
of  country  schools;  and  he  offered  them,  as  prizes,  to  the 
boy  who  would  write  most  carefully;  not  to  the  one  who 
should  write  best,  but  to  the  one  whose  book  should  ex- 
hibit most  appearance  of  effort  and  care  for  a  week.  After 
announcing  his  plan,  he  watched,  with  strong  interest  its 
operation.  He  walked  round  the  room  while  the  writ- 
ing was  in  progress,  to  observe  the  effect  of  his  measure. 
He  did  not  reprove  those  who  were  writing  carelessly; 


INTEREST     IN     TEACHING.  21 

he  simply  noticed  who  and  how  many  they  were.  He 
did  not  commend  those  who  were  evidently  making  effort; 
he  noticed  who  and  how  many  they  were,  that  he  might 
understand  how  far,  and  upon  what  sort  of  minds,  his 
experiment  was  successful,  and  where  it  failed.  He  was 
taking  a  lesson  in  human  nature, — human  nature  as  it 
exhibits  itself  in  boys,  and  was  preparing  to  operate  more 
and  more  powerfully  by  future  plans. 

The  lesson  which  he  learned  by  the  experiment  was 
this,  that  one  or  two  prizes  will  not  influence  the  majority 
of  a  large  school.  A  few  seemed  to  think  that  the  pencils 
were  possibly  within  their  reach,  and  they  made  vigorous 
efforts  to  secure  them;  but  the  rest  wrote  on  as  before. 
Thinking  it  certain  that  they  should  be  surpassed  by  the 
others,  they  gave  up  the  contest,  at  once,  in  despair. 

The  obvious  remedy  was  to  multiply  his  prizes,  so  as  to 
bring  one  within  the  reach  of  all.  He  reflected  too  that 
the  real  prize,  in  such  a  case,  is  not  the  value  of  the  pen- 
cil, but  the  honor  of  the  victory;  and  as  the  honor  of  the 
victory  might  as  well  be  coupled  with  an  object  of  less,  as 
well  as  with  one  of  greater  value,  the  next  week  he  di- 
vided his  two  pencils  into  quarters,  and  offered  to  his  pu- 
pils eight  prizes  instead  of  two.  He  offered  one  to  every 
five  scholars,  as  they  sat  on  their  benches,  and  every  boy 
then  saw,  that  a  reward  would  certainly  come  within  five 
of  him.  His  chance,  accordingly,  instead  of  being  one  in 
twenty,  became  one  in  five. 

Now  is  it  possible  for  a  teacher,  after  having  philoso- 
phized upon  the  nature  of  the  minds  upon  which  he  is  op- 
erating, and  surveyed  the  field,  and  ingeniously  formed  a 
plan,  which  plan  he  hopes  will,  through  his  own  intrinsic 
power,  produce  certain  effects,  —  is  it  possible  for  him 
when  he  comes,  for  the  first  day,  to  witness  its  operations, 
to  come  without  feeling  a  strong  interest  in  the  result? 
It  is  impossible.  After  having  formed  such  a  plan,  and 
made  such  arrangements,  he  will  look  forward,  almost 
with  impatience,  to  the  next  writing  hour.  He  wishes  to 
see  whether  he  has  estimated  the  mental  capacities  and 
tendencies  of  his  little  community  aright;  and  when  the 
time  comes,  and  he  surveys  the  scene,  and  observes  the 


22  INTEREST     IN    TEACHING. 

operation  of  his  measure,  and  sees  many  more  are  reached 
by  it,  than  were  influenced  before,  he  feels  a  strong  gratifi- 
cation; and  it  is  a  gratification  which  is  founded  upon  the 
noblest  principles  of  our  nature.  He  is  tracing  on  a  most 
interesting  field,  the  operation  of  cause  and  effect.  From 
being  the  mere  drudge,  who  drives,  without  intellect  or 
thought,  a  score  or  two  of  boys  to  their  daily  tasks,  he 
rises  to  the  rank  of  an  intellectual  philosopher,  exploring 
the  laws  and  successfully  controlling  the  tendencies  of 
mind. 

It  will  be  observed  too,  that  all  the  time  this  teacher 
was  performing  these  experiments,  and  watching,  with  in- 
tense interest,  the  results,  his  pupils  were  going  on  undis- 
turbed in  their  pursuits.  The  exercises  in  writing  were 
not  interrupted  or  deranged.  This  is  a  point  of  funda- 
mental importance;  for,  if  what  I  should  say  on  the  sub- 
ject of  exercising  ingenuity  and  contrivance  in  teaching, 
should  be  the  means,  in  any  case,  of  leading  a  teacher  to 
break  in  upon  the  regular  duties  of  his  school,  and  destroy 
the  steady  uniformity  with  which  the  great  objects  of  such 
an  institution  should  be  pursued,  my  remarks  had  better 
never  have  been  written.  There  may  be  variety  in  me- 
thods and  plan;  but  through  all  this  variety,  the  school, 
and  every  individual  pupil  of  it,  must  go  steadily  forward  in 
the  acquisition  of  that  knowledge  which  is  of  greatest  im- 
portance in  the  business  of  future  life.  In  other  words,  the 
variations  and  changes,  admitted  by  the  teacher,  ought  to 
be  mainly  confined  to  the  modes  of  accomplishing  those 
permanent  objects  to  which  all  the  exercises  and  arrange- 
ments of  the  school  ought  steadily  to  aim.  More  on  this 
subject  however  in  another  chapter. 

I  will  mention  one  other  circumstance,  which  will  help  to 
explain  the  difference  in  interest  and  pleasure  with  which 
teachers  engage  in  their  work.  I  mean  the  different  views 
they  take  of  the  offences  of  their  pupils.  One  class  of 
teachers  seem  never  to  make  it  a  part  of  their  calculation 
that  their  pupils  will  do  wrong,  and  when  any  misconduct 
occurs,  they  are  disconcerted  and  irritated,  and  look  and 
act  as  if  some  unexpected  occurrence  had  broken  in  upon 
their  plans.  Others  understand  and  consider  all  this  be- 


INTEREST     IN     TEACHING.  23 

forehand.  They  seem  to  think  a  little,  before  they  go 
into  their  school,  what  sort  of  beings  boys  and  girls  are, 
and  any  ordinary  case  of  youthful  delinquency  or  dulness 
does  not  surprise  them.  I  do  not  mean  that  they  treat 
such  cases  with  indifference  or  neglect,  but  that  they  ex- 
pect them,  and  are  prepared  for  them.  Such  a  teacher 
knows  that  boys  and  girls,  are  the  materials  he  has  to  work 
upon,  and  he  takes  care  to  make  himself  acquainted  with 
these  materials,  just  as  they  are.  The  other  class  however, 
do  not  seem  to  know  at  all,  what  sort  of  beings  they  have 
to  deal  with,  or  if  they  know,  do  not  consider.  They  ex- 
pect from  them  what  is  not  to  be  obtained,  and  then  are 
disappointed  and  vexed  at  the  failure.  It  is  as  if  a  carpen- 
ter should  attempt  to  support  an  entablature  by  pillars  of 
wood  too  small  and  weak  for  the  weight,  and  then  go  on, 
from  week  to  week,  suffering  anxiety  and  irritation,  as  he 
sees  them  swelling  and  splitting  under  the  burden,  and 
finding  fault  with  the  wood,  instead  of  taking  it  to  himself. 

It  is,  of  course,  one  essential  part  of  a  man's  duty  in 
engaging  in  any  undertaking,  whether  it  will  lead  him 
to  act  upon  matter  or  upon  mind,  to  become  first  well  ac- 
quainted with  the  circumstances  of  the  case, — the  materi- 
als he  is  to  act  upon,  and  the  means  which  he  may  rea- 
sonably expect  to  have  at  his  command.  If  he  underrates 
his  difficulties,  or  overrates  the  power  of  his  means  of 
overcoming  them,  it  is  his  mistake ;  a  mistake  for  which  he 
is  fully  responsible.  Whatever  may  be  the  nature  of  the 
effect  which  he  aims  at  accomplishing,  he  ought  fully 
to  understand  it,  and  to  appreciate  justly  the  difficulties 
which  lie  in  the  way. 

Teachers  however  very  often  overlook  this.  A  man 
comes  home  from  his  school  at  night,  perplexed  and 
irritated  by  the  petty  misconduct  which  he  has  witnessed, 
and  been  trying  to  check.  He  does  not  however,  look 
forward  and  try  to  prevent  the  occasions  of  it,  adapting  his 
measures  to  the  nature  of  the  material  upon  which  he  has 
to  operate;  buftie  stands  like  the  carpenter  at  his  columns 
making  himself  miserable  in  looking  at  it,  after  it  occurs^ 
and  wondering  what  to  do. 

"  Sir,"  we  might  say  to  him,  "  what  is  the  matter?" 


24  INTEREST     IN    TEACHING. 

"  Why,  I  have  such  boys,  I  can  do  nothing  with  them. 
Were  it  not  for  their  misconduct,  I  might  have  a  very  good 
school." 

"  Were  it  not  for  the  boys?  Why,  is  there  any  pecu- 
liar depravity  in  them  which  you  could  not  have  fore- 
seen?" 

"No;  I  suppose  they  are  pretty  much  like  all  other 
boys,"  he  replies  despairingly;  "they  are  all  hair-brained 
and  unmanageable.  The  plans  I  have  formed  for  my 
school,  would  be  excellent  if  my  boys  would  only  behave 
properly," 

"  Excellent  plans,"  might  we  not  reply,  Cf  and  yet  not 
adapted  to  the  materials  upon  which  they  are  to  operate! 
No.  It  is  your  business  to  know  what  sort  of  beings  boys 
are,  and  to  make  your  calculations  accordingly." 

Two  teachers  may  therefore  manage  their  schools  in 
totally  different  ways:  so  that  one  of  them,  may  neces- 
sarily find  the  business  a  dull,  mechanical  routine,  except 
as  it  is  occasionally  varied  by  perplexity  and  irritation; 
and  the  other,  a  prosperous  and  happy  employment.  The 
one  goes  on  mechanically  the  same,  and  depends  for  his 
power  on  violence,  or  on  threats  and  demonstrations  of  vio- 
lence. The  other  brings  all  his  ingenuity  and  enterprise 
into  the  field,  to  accomplish  a  steady  purpose,  by  means 
ever  varying,  and  depends  for  his  power,  on  his  know- 
ledge of  human  nature,  and  on  the  adroit  adaptation  of 
plans  to  her  fixed  and  uniform  tendencies. 

I  am  very  sorry  however  to  be  obliged  to  say,  that  prob- 
ably the  latter  class  of  teachers  are  decidedly  in  the  mi- 
nority. To  practice  the  art  in  such  a  way  as  to  make  it 
an  agreeable  employment,  is  difficult,  and  it  requires  much 
knowledge  of  human  nature,  much  attention  und  skill. 
And,  after  all,  there  are  some  circumstances  necessarily 
attending  the  work  which  constitute  a  heavy  drawback  on 
th*  pleasures  which  it  might  otherwise  afford.  The  almost 
universal  impression  that  the  business  of  teaching  is  attend- 
ed with  peculiar  trials  and  difficulties,  proves  this. 

There  must  be  some  cause  for  an  impression  so  general. 
It  is  not  right  to  call  it  a  prejudice,  for,  although  a  single 


INTEREST    IN    TEACHING.  25 

individual  may  conceive  a  prejudice,  whole  communities 
very  seldom  do,  unless  in  some  case,  which  is  presented 
at  once  to  the  whole,  so  that  looking  at  it,  through  a  com- 
mon medium,  all  judge  wrong  together.  But  the  general 
opinion  in  regard  to  teaching  is  composed  of  a  vast  number 
of  separate  and  independent  judgments,  and  there  must  be 
some  good  ground  for  the  universal  result. 

It  is  best  therefore,  if  there  are  any  real  and  peculiar 
sources  of  trial  and  difficulty  in  this  pursuit,  that  they 
should  be  distinctly  known  and  acknowledged  at  the  out- 
set. Count  the  cost  before  going  to  war.  It  is  even  bet- 
ter policy  to  overrate,  than  to  underrate  it.  Let  us  see 
then  what  the  real  difficulties  of  teaching  are. 

It  is  not  however,  as  is  generally  supposed,  the  confine- 
ment. A  teacher  is  confined,  it  is  true,  but  not  more  than 
men  of  other  professions  and  employments;  not  more  than 
a  merchant,  and  probably  not  as  much.  A  physician  is 
confined  in  a  different  way,  but  more  closely  than  a  teach- 
er: he  can  never  leave  home:  he  knows  generally  no  vaca- 
tion, and  nothing  but  accidental  rest. 

The  lawyer  is  confined  as  much.  It  is  true,  there  are 
not  throughout  the  year,  exact  hours  which  he  must  keep, 
but  considering  the  imperious  demands  of  his  business,  his 
personal  liberty  is  probably  restrained  as  much  by  it,  as 
that  of  the  teacher.  So  with  all  the  other  professions. 
Although  the  nature  of  the  confinement  may  vary,  it 
amounts  to  about  the  same  in  all.  On  the  other  hand 
the  teacher  enjoys,  in  reference  to  this  subject  of  confine- 
ment, an  advantage,  which  scarcely  any  other  class  of 
men  does  or  can  enjoy.  I  mean  vacations.  A  man  in 
any  other  business  may  force  himself  away  from  it,  for  a 
time,  but  the  cares  and  anxieties  of  his  business  will  follow 
him  wherever  he  goes,  and  it  seems  to  be  reserved  for  the 
teacher,  to  enjoy  alone  the  periodical  luxury  of  a  real  and 
entire  release  from  business  and  care.  On  the  whole,  as  to 
confinement,  it  seems  to  me  that  the  teacher  has  but  little 
ground  of  complaint. 

There  are  however  some  real  and  serious  difficulties 
which  always  have,  and  it  is  to  be  feared,  always  will, 
cluster  around  this  employment;  and  which  must,  for  a 

3 


26  INTEREST     IN     TEACHING. 

long  time,  at  least,  lead  most  men  to  desire  some  other  em- 
ployment for  the  business  of  life.  There  may  perhaps  be 
some,  who  by  their  peculiar  skill,  can  overcome,  or  avoid 
them,  and  perhaps  the  science  may,  at  some  future  day, 
be  so  far  improved,  that  all  may  avoid  them.  As  I  de- 
scribe them  however  now,  most  of  the  teachers  into  whose 
hands  this  treatise  may  fall,  will  probably  find  that  their 
own  experience  corresponds,  in  this  respect,  with  mine. 

1.  The  first  great  difficulty  which  the  teacher  feels,  is 
a  sort  of  moral  responsibility  for  the  conduct  of  others. 
If  his  pupils  do  wrong,  he  feels  almost  personal  responsi- 
bility for  it.  As  he  walks  out,  some  afternoon,  weary  with 
his  labors,  and  endeavoring  to  forget,  for  a  little  time,  all  his 
cares,  he  comes  upon  a  group  of  boys,  in  rude  and  noisy 
quarrels,  or  engaged  in  mischief  of  some  sort,  and  his 
heart  sinks  within  him.  It  is  hard  enough  for  any  one  to 
witness  their  bad  conduct,  with  a  spirit  unruffled  and  un- 
disturbed, but  for  their  teacher,  it  is  perhaps  impossible.  He 
feels  responsible;  in  fact  he  is  responsible.  If  his  scholars 
are  disorderly,  or  negligent,  or  idle,  or  quarrelsome,  he 
feels  condemned  himself,  almost  as  if  he  were,  himself,  the 
actual  transgressor. 

This  difficulty  is  in  a  great  degree,  peculiar  to  a  teach- 
er. A  physician  is  called  upon  to  prescribe  for  a  patient; 
he  examines  the  case,  and  writes  his  prescription.  When 
this  is  done,  his  duty  is  ended,  and  whether  the  patient 
obeys  the  prescription  and  lives,  or  neglects  it  and  dies, 
the  physician  feels  exonerated  from  all  responsibility.  He 
may,  and  in  some  cases  does  feel  anxious  concern,  and  may 
regret  the  infatuation  by  which,  in  some  unhappy  case,  a 
valuable  life  may  be  hazarded  or  destroyed.  But  he  feels 
no  moral  responsibility  for  another's  guilt. 

It  is  so  with  all  the  other  employments  in  life.  They 
do  indeed  often  bring  men  into  collision  with  other  men. 
But  though  sometimes  vexed,  and  irritated  by  the  conduct 
of  a  neighbor,  a  client,  or  a  patient,  they  feel  not  half 
the  bitterness  of  the  solicitude  and  anxiety  which  come  to 
the  teacher  through  the  criminality  of  his  pupil.  In  ordi- 
nary cases  he  not  only  feels  responsible  for  efforts,  but  for 
their  results ;  and  when,  notwithstanding  all  his  efforts,  his 


INTEREST     IN    TEACHING.  27 

pupils  will  do  wrong,  his  spirit  sinks,  with  an  intensity  of 
anxious  despondency,  which  none  but  a  teacher  can  un- 
derstand. 

This  feeling  of  almost  moral  accountability  for  the  guilt 
of  other  persons,  is  a  continual  burden.  The  teacher  in 
the  presence  of  the  pupil  never  is  free  from  it.  It  links 
him  to  them  by  a  bond,  which,  perhaps,  he  ought  not  to 
sunder,  and  which  he  cannot  sunder  if  he  would.  And 
sometimes,  when  those  committed  to  his  charge  are  idle, 
or  faithless,  or  unprincipled,  it  wears  away  his  spirits  and 
his  health  together.  I  think  there  is  nothing  analogous  to 
this  moral  connexion  between  teacher  and  pupil,  unless  it 
be  in  the  case  of  a  parent  and  child.  And  here  on  account 
of  the  comparative  smallness  of  the  number  under  the 
parent's  care,  the  evil  is  so  much  diminished  that  it  is  easily 
borne. 

2.  The  second  great  difficulty  of  the  teacher's  em- 
ployments, is  the  immense  multiplicity  of  the  objects  of  his 
attention  and  care,  during  the  time  he  is  employed  in  his 
business.  His  scholars  are  individuals,  and  notwithstand- 
ing all  that  the  most  systematic  can  do,  in  the  way  of  clas- 
sification,,they  must  bejittended  to  in  a  great  measure,  as 
individuals.  A  merch'ant  keeps  his  commodities  together, 
and  looks  upon  a  cargo  composed  of  ten  thousand  articles, 
and  worth  100,000  dollars  as  one:  he  speaks  of  it  as  one: 
and  there  is,  in  many  cases,  no  more  perplexity  in  planning 
its  destination,  than  if  it  were  a  single  box  of  raisins.  A 
lawyer  may  have  a  great  many  important  cases,  but  he  has 
only  one  at  a  time ;  that  is,  he  attends  to  but  one  at  a  time. 
That  one  maybe  intricate,  —  involving  many  facts  and 
requiring  to  be  examined  in  many  aspects  and  relations. 
But  he  looks  at  but  few  of  these  facts  and  regards  but 
few  of  these  relations  at  a  time.  The  points  which  de- 
mand his  attention  come,  one  after  another,  in  regular 
succession.  His  mind  may  thus  be  kept  calm.  He 
avoids  confusion  and  perplexity.  But  no  skill  or  classifi- 
cation will  turn  the  poor  teacher's  hundred  scholars  into 
one,  or  enable  him,  except  to  a  very  limited  extent,  and 
for  a  very  limited  purpose,  to  regard  them  as  one.  He 
has  a  distinct,  and,  in  many  respects,  a  different  work  to 


28  INTEREST    IN    TEACHING. 

do  for  every  one  of  the  crowd  before  him.  Difficulties 
must  be  explained  in  detail;  questions  must  be  answered 
one  by  one;  and  each  scholar's  own  conduct  and  charac- 
ter must  be  considered  by  itself.  His  work  is  thus  made 
up  of  a  thousand  minute  particulars,  which  are  all  crowd- 
ing upon  his  attention  at  once,  and  which  he  cannot  group 
together,  or  combine,  or  simplify.  He  must  by  some 
means  or  other  attend  to  them  in  all  their  distracting  indi- 
viduality. And  in  a  large  and  complicated  school,  the 
endless  multiplicity  and  variety  of  objects  of  attention  and 
care,  impose  a  task  under  which  few  intellects  can  long 
stand. 

I  have  said  that  this  endless  multiplicity  and  variety 
cannot  be  reduced  and  simplified  by  classification.  I 
mean,  of  course,  that  this  can  be  done  only  to  a  very  lim- 
ited extent,  compared  with  what  may  be  effected  in  the 
other  pursuits  of  mankind.  Were  it  not  for  the  art  of 
classification  and  system,  no  school  could  have  more  than 
ten  scholars,  as  I  intend  hereafter  to  show.  The  great 
reliance  of  the  teacher  is  upon  this  art,  to  reduce  to  some 
tolerable  order,  what  would  otherwise  be  the  inextricable 
confusion  of  his  business.  He  mustbe  systenyitic.  He 
must  classify  and  arrange;  but  atteTTie  has  done  all  that 
he  can,  he  must  still  expect  that  his  daily  business  will 
continue  to  consist  of  a  vast  multitude  of  minute  particu- 
lars, from  one  to  another  of  which  the  mind  must  turn  with 
a  rapidity,  which,  few  of  the  other  employments  of  life 
ever  demand. 

These  are  the  essential  sources  of  difficulty  with  which 
the  teacher  has  to  contend;  but,  as  I  shall  endeavor  to 
show  in  succeeding  chapters,  though  they  cannot  be  entirely 
removed,  they  can  be  so  far  mitigated  by  the  appropriate 
means,  as  to  render  the  employment  a  happy  one.  I 
have  thought  it  best  however,  as  this  work  will  doubtless 
be  read  by  many,  who,  when  they  read  it,  are  yet  to  be- 
gin  their  labors,  to  describe  frankly  and  fully  to  them  the 
difficulties  which  beset  the  path  they  are  about  to  enter. 
"  The  wisdom  of  the  prudent  is,  to  understand  his  way." 
It  is  often  wisdom  to  understand  it  beforehand. 


CHAPTER  II. 

GENERAL    ARRANGEMENTS. 

THE  distraction  and  perplexity  of  the  teacher's  life  are, 
as  was  explained  in  the  last  chapter,  almosr  proverbial. 
There  are  other  pressing  and  exhausting  pursuits,  which 
wear  away  the  spirit  by  the  ceaseless  care  which  they  im- 
pose, or  perplex  and  bewilder  the  intellect  by  the  multi- 
plicity and  intricacy  of  their  details.  But  the  business  of 
teaching,  by  a  pre-eminence  not  very  enviable,  stands,  al- 
most by  common  consent,  at  the  head  of  the  catalogue. 

I  have  already  alluded  to  this  subject  in  the  preceding 
chapter;  and  probably  the  greater  majority  of  actual 
teachers  will  admit  the  truth  of  the  view  there  presented. 
Some  will  however,  doubtless  say,  that  they  do  not  find 
the  business  of  teaching  so  perplexing  and  exhausting  an 
employment.  They  take  things  calmly.  They  do  one 
thing  at  a  time,  and  that  without  useless  solicitude  and 
anxiety.  So  that  teaching,  with  them,  though  it  has, 
indeed,  its  solicitudes  and  cares,  as  every  other  responsible 
employment  must  necessarily  have,  is,  after  all,  a  calm 
and  quiet  pursuit,  which  they  follow  from  month  to  month, 
and  from  year  to  year,  without  any  extraordinary  agitations, 
or  any  unusual  burdens  of  anxiety  and  care. 

There  are  indeed  such  cases,  but  they  are  exceptions; 
and  unquestionably  an  immense  majority,  especially  of 
those  who  are  beginners  in  the  work,  find  it  such  as  I 
have  described.  I  think  it  need  not  be  so;  or  rather,  I 
think  the  evil  may  be  avoided  to  a  very  great  degree. 
In  this  chapter  I  shall  endeavor  to  show  how  order  may 
be  produced  out  of  that  almost  inextricable  mass  of  con- 
fusion, into  which  so  many  teachers,  on  commencing  their 
labors,  find  themselves  plunged. 

3* 


30  f          GENERAL    ARRANGEMENTS. 

The  objects  then,  to  be  aimed  at  in  the  general  arrange- 
ments of  schools,  are  two-fold. 

1 .  That  the  teacher  may  be  left  uninterrupted,  to  attend 
to  one  thing  at  a  time. 

2.  That  the  individual  scholars  may  have  constant  em- 
ployment, and  such  an  amount  and  such  kinds  of  study, 
as  shall  be  suited  to  the  circumstances  and  capacities  of 
each. 

I  shall  examine  each  in  their  order. 

1.  The  following  are  the  principal  things  which,  in  a 
vast  number  of  schools,  are  all  the  time  pressing  upon  the 
teacher:  or  rather,  they  are  the  things  which  must,  every 
where,  press  upon  the  teacher,  except  so  far  as,  by  the 
skill  of  his  arrangements,  he  contrives  to  remove  them. 

1 .  Giving  leave  to  whisper  or  to  leave  seats. 

2.  Mending  pens. 

3.  Answering  questions  in  regard  to  studies. 

4.  Hearing  recitations. 

5.  Watching  the  behavior  of  the  scholars. 

6.  Administering  reproof  and  punishment  for  offences 
as  they  occur. 

A  pretty  large  number  of  objects  of  attention  and  care, 
one  would  say,  to  be  pressing  upon  the  mind  of  the  teacher 
at  one  and  the  same  time, — and  all  *he  time,  too!  Hun- 
dreds and  hundreds  of  teachers  in  every  part  of  our  coun- 
try, there  is  no  doubt,  have  all  these,  crowding  upon  them 
from  morning  to  night,  with  no  cessation,  except  perhaps 
some  accidental  and  momentary  respite.  During  the 
winter  months,  while  the  principal  common  schools  in  our 
country  are  in  operation,  it  is  sad  to  reflect  how  many 
teachers  come  home,  every  evening,  with  bewildered  and 
aching  heads,  having  been  vainly  trying  all  the  day,  to 
do  six  things  at  a  time,  while  He,  who  made  the  human 
mind,  has  determined  that  it  shall  do  but  one.  How  many 
become  discouraged  and  disheartened  by  what  they  con- 
sider the  unavoidable  trials  of  a  teacher's  life,  and  give  up 
in  despair,  just  because  their  faculties  will  not  sustain  a 
six-fold  task.  There  are  multitudes  who,  in  early  life, 
attempted  teaching,  and,  after  having  been  worried,  almost 
to  distraction,  by  the  simultaneous  pressure  of  these  multi- 


GENERAL    ARRANGEMENTS.  31 

farious  cares,  gave  up  the  employment  in  disgust,  and 
forever  afterwards  wonder  how  any  body  can  like  teach- 
ing. I  know  multitudes  of  persons  to  whom  the  above 
description  will  exactly  apply. 

I  once  heard  a  teacher  who  had  been  very  successful, 
even  in  large  schools,  say. that  he  could  hear  two  classes 
recite,  mend  pens,  and  watch  his  school,  all  at  the  same 
time;  and  that,  without  any  distraction  of  mind,  or  any 
unusual  fatigue.  Of  course  the  recitations  in  such  a  case 
must  be  memoriter.  There  are  very  few  minds  however, 
which  can  thus  perform  triple  or  quadruple  work,  and 
probably  none  which  can  safely  be  tasked  so  severely. 
For  my  part,  I  can  do  but  one  thing  at  a  time;  and  I 
have  no  question  that  the  true  policy  for  all,  is,  to  learn, 
not  to  do  every  thing  at  once,  but  so  to  classify  and  ar- 
range their  work,  that  they  shall  have  but  one  thing  to  do. 
Instead  of  vainly  attempting  to  attend  simultaneously  to 
a  dozen  things,  they  should  so  plan  their  work,  that  only 
one  will  demand  attention. 

Let  us  then  examine  the  various  particulars  above  men- 
tioned in  succession,  and  see  how  each  can  be  disposed  of, 
so  as  not  to  be  a  constant  source  of  interruption  and  de- 
rangement. 

1.  Whispering  and  leaving  seats.  In  regard  to  this 
subject,  there  are  very  different  methods,  now  in  practice 
in  different  schools.  In  some,  especially  in  very  small 
schools,  the  teacher  allows  the  pupils  to  act  according  to 
their  own  discretion.  They  whisper  and  leave  their  seats 
whenever  they  think  it  necessary.  This  plan  may  possi- 
bly be  admissible  in  a  very  small  school  ;  that  is,  in  one 
often  or  twelve  pupils.  I  am  convinced,  however,  that 
it  is  very  bad  here.  No  vigilant  watch,  which  it  is  pos- 
sible for  any  teacher  to  exert,  will  prevent  a  vast  amount 
of  mere  talk,  entirely  foreign  to  the  business  of  the  school. 
I  tried  this  plan  very  thoroughly,  with  high  ideas  01  the 
dependence  which  might  be  placed  upon  conscience  and 
a  sense  of  duty,  if  these  principles  are  properly  brought 
out  to  action  in  an  effort  to  sustain  the  system.  I  was 
told  by  distinguished  teachers,  that  it  would  not  be  found 
to  answer.  But  predictions  of  failure  in  such  cases  only 


32  GENERAL    ARRANGEMENTS. 

prompt  to  greater  exertions,  and  I  persevered.  But  I 
was  forced  at  last  to  give  up  the  point,  and  adopt  another 
plan.  My  pupils  would  make  resolutions  enough;  they 
understood  their  duty  well  enough.  They  were  allowed 
to  leave  their  seats  and  whisper  to  their  companions, 
whenever,  in  their  honest  judgment,  it  was  necessary  for 
the  prosecution  of  their  studies.  I  knew  that  it  sometimes 
would  be  necessary,  and  I  was  desirous  to  adopt  this  plan 
to  save  myself  the  constant  interruption  of  hearing  and 
replying  to  requests.  But  it  would;  not  do.  Whenever, 
from  time  to  time,  I  called  them  to  account,  I  found 
that  a  large  majority,  according  to  their  own  confession, 
were  in  the  habit  of  holding  daily  and  deliberate  com- 
munication with  each  other,  on  subjects  entirely  foreign 
to  the  business  of  the  school;  A  more  experienced  teach- 
er would  have  predicted  this  result;  but  I  had  very  high 
ideas  of  the  power  of  cultivated  conscience;  and  in  fact, 
still  have.  But  then,  like  most  other  persons  who  become 
possessed  of  a  good  idea,  I  could  not  be  satisfied  without 
carrying  it  to  an  extreme. 

Still  it  is  necessary  to  give  pupils,  sometimes,  the  oppor- 
tunity to  whisper  and  leave  seats.  Cases  occur  where 
this  is  unavoidable.  It  cannot  therefore  be  forbidden  al- 
together. How  then,  you  will  ask,  can  the  teacher  regu- 
late this  practice,  so  as  to  prevent  the  evils  which  will 
otherwise  flow  from  it,  without  being  continually  interrupt- 
ed by  the  request  for  permission? 

By  a  very  simple  method.  Appropriate  particular  times 
at  which  all  this  business  is  to  be  done,  and  forbid  it  alto- 
gether at  every  other  time.  It  is  well  on  other  accounts 
to  give  the  pupils  of  a  school  a  little  respite,  at  least 
every  hour;  and  if  this  is  done,  an  intermission  of  study 
for  two  minutes  each  time,  will  be  sufficient.  During 
this  time,  general  permission  should  be  given  to  speak  or 
to  leave  seats,  provided  they  do  nothing  at  such  a  time  to 
disturb  the  studies  of  others.  This  has  been  my  plan  for 
two  or  three  years,  and  no  arrangement  which  I  have  ever 
made,  has  operated  for  so  long  a  time,  so  uninterruptedly, 
and  so  entirely  to  my  satisfaction  as  this.  It  of  course 
will  require  some  little  time,  and  no  little  firmness,  to  es- 


GENERAL    ARRANGEMENTS.  33 

tablish  the  new  order  of  things,  where  a  school  has  been 
accustomed  to  another  course;  but  where  this  is  once 
done,  I  know  no  one  plan  so  simple  and  so  easily  put 
into  execution,  which  will  do  so  much  towards  relieving 
the  teacher  of  the  distraction  and  perplexity  of  his  pur- 
suits. 

In  making  the  change,  however,  it  is  of  fundamental 
importance  that  the  pupils  should  themselves  be  interested 
in  it.  Their  cooperation,  or  rather  the  cooperation  of  the 
majority,  which  it  is  very  easy  to  obtain,  is  absolutely 
essential  to  success.  I  say  this  is  very  easily  obtained. 
Let  us  suppose  that  some  teacher,  who  has  been  accus- 
tomed to  require  his  pupils  to  ask  and  obtain  permission, 
every  time  they  wish  to  speak  to  a  companion,  is  induced 
by  these  remarks  to  introduce  this  plan.  He  says  accor- 
dingly to  his  school: 

' s  You  know  that  you  are  now  accustomed  to  ask  me 
whenever  you  wish  to  obtain  permission  to  whisper  to  a 
companion,  or  to  leave  your  seats:  now  I  have  been  think- 
ing of  a  plan  which  will  be  better  for  both  you  and  me. 
By  our  present  plan,  you  are  sometimes  obliged  to  wait 
before  I  can  attend  to  your  request.  Sometimes  I  think 
it  is  unnecessary,  and  deny  you,  when  perhaps  I  was  mis- 
taken, and  it  was  really  necessary.  At  other  times,  I 
think  it  very  probable,  that  when  it  is  quite  desirable  for 
you  to  leave  your  seat,  you  do  not  ask,  because  you  think 
you  may  not  obtain  permission,  and  you  do  not  wish  to  ask 
and  be  refused.  Do  you,  or  not,  experience  these  incon- 
veniences from  our  present  plans?" 

The  boys  would  undoubtedly  answer  in  the  affirma- 
tive. 

"I  experience  great  inconvenience,  too.  I  am  very 
frequently  interrupted  when  busily  engaged,  and  it  also 
occupies  a  great  portion  of  my  time  and  attention.  It 
requires  as  much  mental  effort  to  consider  and  decide 
sometimes  whether  I  ought  to  allow  a  pupil  to  leave  his 
seat,  as  it  would  to  decide  a  much  more  important  ques- 
tion ;  therefore  I  do  not  like  our  plan,  and  I  have  anoth- 
er to  propose." 

The  boys  are  all  attention  to  know  what  the  new  plan  is. 


34  GENERAL    ARRANGEMENTS. 

It  will  always  be  of  great  advantage  to  the  school,  for  the 
teacher  to  propose  his  new  plans  from  time  to  time  to  his 
pupils  in  such  a  way  as  this.  It  interests  them  in  the  im- 
provement of  the  school,  exercises  their  judgment,  estab- 
lishes a  common  feeling  between  teacher  and  pupil,  and 
in  many  other  ways  will  assist  very  much  in  promoting 
the  welfare  of  the  school. 

"  My  plan,"  continues  the  teacher,  f<  is  this: — to  allow 
you  all,  besides  the  recess,  a  short  time,  two  or  three  min- 
utes perhaps,  every  hour;  "  (or  every  half  hour,  according 
to  the  character  of  the  school,  the  age  of  the  pupils,  or  oth- 
er circumstances,  to  be  judged  of  by  the  teacher,)  "  dur- 
ing which  you  may  all  whisper  or  leave  ^  jur  seats,  without 
asking  permission." 

Instead  of  deciding  the  question  of  the  frequencij  of  this 
general  permission,  the  teacher  may,  if  he  pleases,  leave  it 
to  the  pupils  to  decide.  It  is  often  useful  to  leave  the  de- 
cision of  such  a  question  to  them.  On  this  subject,  how- 
ever, I  shall  speak  in  another  place.  It  is  only  necessary, 
here,  to  say,  that  this  point  may  be  safely  left  to  them, 
since  the  time  is  so  small  which  is  to  be  thus  appropriated. 
Even  if  they  vote  to  have  the  general  permission  to  whis- 
per every  half  hour,  it  will  make  but  eight  minutes  in  the 
forenoon.  There  being  six  half  hours  in  the  forenoon, 
and  one  of  them  ending  at  the  close  of  school,  and  anoth- 
er at  the  recess,  only  four  of  these  rests,  as  a  military 
man  would  call  them,  would  be  necessary;  and  four,  of 
two  minutes  each,  would  make  eight  minutes.  If  the 
teacher  thinks  that  evil  would  result  from  the  interruption 
of  the  studies  so  often,  he  may  offer  the  pupils  three  min- 
utes rest  every  hour,  instead  oftiuo  minutes  every  half  hour, 
and  let  them  take  their  choice ;  or  he  may  decide  the  case 
altogether  himself. 

Such  a  change,  from  particular  permission  on  individ- 
ual requests  to  general  permission  at  stated  times,  would 
unquestionably  be  popular  in  every  school,  if  the  teacher 
managed  the  business  properly.  And  by  presenting  it  as 
an  object  of  common  interest,  —  an  arrangement  proposed 
for  the  common  convenience  of  teacher  and  pupils,  the  lat- 
ter may  be  much  interested  in  carrying  the  plan  into 


GENERAL    ARRANGEMENTS.  35 

effect.  We  must  not  rely,  however,  entirely  upon  their 
interest  in  it.  All  that  we  can  expect  from  such  an  ef- 
fort to  interest  them,  as  I  have  described  and  recommend- 
ed, is  to  get  a  majority  on  our  side,  so  that  we  may  have 
only  a  small  minority,  to  deal  with  by  other  measures. 
Still  ive  must  calculate  on  having  this  minority,  and  form 
our  plans  accordingly,  or  we  shall  be  sadly  disappointed. 
I  shall,  however,  in  another  place,  speak  of  this  principle 
of  interesting  the  pupils  in  our  plans,  for  the  purpose  of  se- 
curing a  majority  in  our  favor,  and  explain  the  methods  by 
which  the  minority  is  then  to  be  governed.  I  only  mean 
here  to  say,  that,  by  such  means,  the  teacher  may  easily 
interest  a  large  proportion  of  the  scholars,  in  carrying  his 
plans  into  effect,  and  that  he  must  expect  to  be  prepared 
with  other  measures,  for  those,  who  will  not  be  governed 
by  these. 

You  cannot  reasonably  expect  however,  that  immediate- 
ly after  having  explained  your  plan,  it  will,  at  once,  go  into 
full  and  complete  operation.  Even  those  who  are  firmly 
determined  to  keep  the  rule,  will,  from  inadvertence, 
for  a  day  or  two,  make  communication  with  each  other. 
They  must  be  trained,  not  by  threatening  and  punish- 
ment, but  by  your  good-humored  assistance,  to  their  new 
duties.  When  I  first  adopted  this  plan  in  my  school, 
something  like  the  following  proceedings  took  place. 

"  Do  you  suppose  that  you  will  perfectly  keep  this  rule, 
from  this  time? " 

"  No  sir,"  was  the  answer. 

"  I  suppose  you  will  not.  Some,  I  am  afraid,  may  not 
really  be  determined  to  keep  it,  and  others  will  forget. 
Now  I  wish  every  one  would  keep  an  exact  account  to 
day,  of  all  the  instances  of  speaking  and  leaving  seats, 
out  of  the  regular  times,  and  be  prepared  to  report  them 
at  the  close  of  the  school.  Of  course,  I  shall  have  no 
punishment  for  it;  but  it  will  very  much  assist  you  to 
watch  yourselves,  if  you  expect  to  make  a  report  at  the 
end  of  "the  forenoon.  Do  you  like  this  plan?  " 

"  Yes  sir,"  was  the  answer,  and  all  seemed  to  enter 
into  it  with  spirit. 

In  order  to  mark  more  definitely  the  times  for  commu- 


36  GENERAL    ARRANGEMENTS. 

nication  I  wrote,  in  large  letters,  on  a  piece  of  pasteboard, 
"  STUDT  HOURS,"  arid  making  a  hole  over  the  centre  of 
it,  I  hurg  it  upon  a  nail,  over  my  desk.  At  the  close  of 
each  ha]f  hour,  a  little  bell  was  to  be  struck,  and  this  card 
was  to  be  taken  down.  When  it  was  up,  they  were,  on 
no  occasion  whatever,  (except  some  such  extraordinary 
occurrence  as  sickness,  or  my  sending  one  of  them  on  a 
message  to  another,  or  something  clearly  out  of  the  com- 
mon course,)  to  speak  to  each  other;  but  were  to  wait, 
whatever  they  wanted,  until  the  Study  Card,  as  they  called 
it,  was  taken  down. 

"  Suppose  now,"  said  I,  "  that  a  young  lady  has  come 
into  school,  and  has  accidentally  left  her  book  in  the  en- 
try;— the  book  from  which  she  is  to  study  during  the  first 
half  hour  of  the  school:  she  sits  near  the  door,  and  she 
might,  in  a  moment,  slip  out  and  obtain  it:  if  she  does  not, 
she  must  spend  the  half  hour  in  idleness,  and  be  unpre- 
pared in  her  lesson.  What  is  it  her  duty  to  do?  " 

"  To  go;  "  "  Not  to  go;"  answered  the  scholars  simul- 
taneously. 

"  It  would  be  her  duty  not  to  go;  but  I  suppose  it  will 
be  very  difficult  for  me  to  convince  you  of  it." 

"  The  reason  is  this,"  I  continued;  "  if  the  one  case 
I  have  supposed,  were  the  only  one,  which  would  be  like- 
ly to  occur,  it  would  undoubtedly  be  better  for  her  to  go; 
but  if  it  is  understood  that,  in  such  cases,  the  rule  may 
be  dispensed  with,  there  will  be  many  others,  where  it 
will  be  equally  necessary  to  lay  it  aside.  Scholars  will 
differ  in  regard  to  the  degree  of  inconvenience,  which  they 
must  submit  to,  rather  than  break  the  rule.  They  will 
gradually  do  it  on  slighter  and  slighter  occasions,  until 
at  last  the  rule  will  be  disregarded  entirely.  We  must, 
therefore,  draw  a  precise  line,  and  individuals  must  sub- 
mit to  a  little  inconvenience,  sometimes,  to  promote  the 
general  good." 

At  the  close  of  the  day,  I  requested  all  in  the  school  to 
rise.  While  they  were  standing,  I  called  them  to  account 
in  the  following  manner. 

"  Now  it  is  very  probable  that  some  have,  from  inad- 
vertence, or  from  design,  omitted  to  keep  an  account  of 


TJNJVEESIT1 

GENERAL   ARRANGEMENT^      /^  37 


the  number  of  transgressions  of  the  rule,  which  they  have 
committed  during  the  day;  others,  perhaps,  do  not  wish 
to  make  a  report  of  themselves.  Now  as  this  is  a  com- 
mon and  voluntary  effort,  I  wish  to  have  none  render  as- 
sistance, who  do  not,  of  their  own  accord,  desire  to  do  so; 
all  those,  therefore,  who  are  not  able  to  make  a  report, 
from  not  having  been  correct  in  keeping  it,  and  all  those 
who  are  unwilling  to  report  themselves,  may  sit." 

A  very  small  number  hesitatingly  took  their  seats. 

"  I  am  afraid  that  all  do  not  sit,  who  really  wish  not 
to  report  themselves.  Now  I  am  honest  in  saying  I  wish 
you  to  do  just  as  you  please.  If  a  great  majority  of  the 
school  really  wish  to  assist  me  in  accomplishing  the  object, 
why,  of  course,  I  am  glad;  still,  I  shall  not  call  upon  any 
for  such  assistance,  unless  it  is  freely  and  voluntarily  ren- 
dered." 

One  or  two  more  took  their  seats  while  these  things 
were  saying.  Among  such,  there  would  generally  be 
some,  who  would  refuse  to  have  any  thing  to  do  with  the 
measure,  just  from  a  desire  to  thwart  and  impede  the 
plans  of  the  teacher.  If  so,  it  is  best  to  take  no  notice  of 
them.  If  the  teacher  can  contrive  to  obtain  a  great  major- 
ity upon  his  side,  so  as  to  let  them  see  that  any  opposition 
which  they  can  raise,  is  of  no  consequence,  and  is  not 
even  noticed,  they  will  soon  be  ashamed  of  it. 

The  reports  then  of  those  who  remained  standing,  were 
called  for;  first,  those  who  had  whispered  only  once  were 
requested  to  sit ;  then  those  who  had  whispered  more  than 
once,  and  less  than  five  times,  &c.  &c.,  until  at  last  all 
were  down.  In  such  a  case,  the  pupils  might,  if  thought 
expedient,  again  be  requested  to  rise,  for  the  purpose  of 
asking  some  other  questions,  with  reference  to  ascer- 
taining whether  they  had  spoken  most  in  the  former  or 
latter  part  of  the  forenoon.  The  number  who  had  spoken 
inadvertently,  and  the  number  who  had  done  it  by  de- 
sign, might  be  ascertained.  These  inquiries  accustom 
the  pupils  to  render  honest  and  faithful  accounts  of  them- 
selves. They  become,  by  such  means,  familiarized  to  the 
practice,  and  by  means  of  it,  the  teacher  can,  many  times, 
receive  most  important  assistance. 

4 


38  GENERAL    ARRANGEMENTS. 

All  however,  should  be  done  in  a  pleasant  tone,  and 
with  a  pleasant  and  cheerful  air.  It  should  be  considered 
by  the  pupils,  not  a  reluctant  confession  of  guilt,  for 
which  they  are  to  be  rebuked  or  punished,  but  the  volun- 
tary and  free  report  of  the  result  of  an  experiment,  in  which 
all  are  interested. 

Some  will  have  been  dishonest  in  their  reports  :  to  di- 
minish the  number  of  these,  the  teacher  may  say,  after 
the  report  is  concluded: 

' '  We  will  drop  the  subject  here  to-day.  To-morrow  we 
will  make  another  effort,  when  we  shall  be  more  success- 
ful. I  have  taken  your  reports  as  you  have  offered  them, 
without  any  inquiry,  because  I  had  no  doubt,  that  a  great 
majority  of  this  school  would  be  honest,  at  all  hazards. 
They  would  not,  I  am  confident,  make  a  false  report, 
even  if,  by  a  true  one,  they  were  to  bring  upon  themselves 
punishment;  so  that  I  think  I  may  have  confidence  that 
nearly  all  these  reports  have  been  faithful.  Still,  it  is 
very  probable,  that,  among  so  large  a  number,  some  may 
have  made  a  report,  which,  they  are  now  aware,  was  not 
perfectly  fair  and  honest.  I  do  not  wish  to  know  who 
they  are ;  if  there  are  any  such  cases,  I  only  wish  to  say 
to  the  rest,  how  much  pleasanter  it  is  for  you  that  you 
have  been  honest  and  open.  The  business  is  now  all 
ended;  you  have  done  your  duty;  and  though  you  report- 
ed a  little  larger  number  than  you  would,  if  you  had  been 
disposed  to  conceal,  yet  you  go  away  from  school  with  a 
quiet  conscience.  On  the  other  hand,  how  miserable 
must  any  boy  feel,  if  he  has  any  nobleness  of  mind  what- 
ever, to  go  away  from  school,  to-day,  thinking  that  he  has 
not  been  honest;  that  he  has  been  trying  to  conceal  his 
faults,  and  thus  to  obtain  a  credit  which  he  did  not  justly 
deserve.  Always  be  honest,  let  the  consequence  be  what 
it  may." 

The  reader  will  understand  that  the  object  of  such 
measures  is,  simply  to  secure  as  large  a  majority  as  possible, 
to  make  voluntary  efforts  to  observe  the  rule.  I  do  not 
expect  that  by  such  measures,  universal,  obedience  can  be 
exacted.  The  teacher  must  follow  up  the  plan,  after  a 
few  days,  by  other  measures,  for  those  who  will  not  yield 


GENERAL     ARRANGEMENTS.  39 

to  such  inducements  as  these.  Upon  this  subject,  how- 
ever,  I  shall  speak  more  particularly  at  a  future  time. 

In  my  own  school,  it  required  two  or  three  weeks  to 
exclude  whispering  and  communication  by  signs.  The 
period  necessary  to  effect  the  revolution  will  be  longer  or 
shorter,  according  to  the  circumstances  of  the  school,  and 
the  dexterity  of  the  teacher;  and,  after  all,  the  teacher 
must  not  hope  entirely  to  exclude  it.  Approximation  to 
excellence  is  all  that  we  can  expect;  for  unprincipled  and 
deceiving  characters  will  perhaps  always  be  found,  and 
no  system  whatever  can  prevent  their  existence.  Proper 
treatment  may  indeed  be  the  means  of  their  reformation, 
but  before  this  process  has  arrived  at  a  successful  result, 
others  similar  in  character  will  have  entered,  so  that  the 
teacher  can  never  expect  perfection  in  the  operation  of 
any  of  his  plans. 

I  found  so  much  relief  from  the  change  which  this  plan 
introduced,  that  I  soon  took  measures  for  rendering  it  per- 
manent; and  though  I  am  not  much  in  favor  of  efforts  to 
bring  all  teachers  and  all  schools  to  the  same  plans,  this 
principle  of  whispering  at  limited  and  prescribed  times  alone, 
seems  to  me  well  suited  to  universal  adoption. 

The  following  simple  apparatus  has  been  used  in  seve- 
ral schools  where  this  principle  has  been  adopted.  A 
drawing  and  description  of  it  is  inserted  here,  as  by  this 
means,  some  teachers,  who  may  like  to  try  the  course  here 
recommended,  may  be  saved  the  time  and  trouble  of  con- 
triving something  of  the  kind  themselves. 

The  figure  a  a  a  a  is  a  board,  about  18  inches  by  12,  to 
which  the  parts  are  to  be  attached,  and  which  is  to  be 
nailed  against  the  wall,  at  the  height  of  about  8  feet, 
b  c  d  c  is  a  plate  of  tin  or  brass,  8  inches  by  12,  of  the 
fqrm  represented  in  the  drawing.  At  c  c,  the  lower  ex- 
tremities of  the  parts  at  the  sides,  the  metal  is  bent  round, 
so  as  to  clasp  a  wire  which  runs  from  c  to  c,  the  ends  of 
which  wire  are  bent  at  right  angles  and  run  into  the  board. 
The  plate  will  consequently  turn  on  this  axis,  as  on  a 
hinge.  At  the  top  of  the  plate  d,  a  small  projection  of 
the  tin  turns  inwards,  and  to  this,  one  end  of  the  cord  m  m 
is  attached.  This  cord  passes  back  from  d  to  a  small 


40 


GENERAL    ARRANGEMENTS. 


pulley  at  {he  upper  part  of 
the  board,  and  at  the  lower 
end  of  it  a  tassel,  loaded  so 
as  to  be  an  exact  counter- 
poise to  the  card,  is  attached. 
By  raising  the  tassel,  the 
plate  will  of  course  fall  over 
forward  till  it  is  stopped  by 
the  part  b  striking  the  board, 
when  it  will  be  in  a  horizon* 
tal  position.  On  the  other 
hand,  by  pulling  down  the 
tassel,  the  plate  will  be  raised 
and  drawn  upwards  against 
the  board,  so  as  to  present 
its  convex  surface,  with  the 
words  STUDY  HOURS  upon 
it,  distinctly  to  the  school. 
In  the  drawing  it  is  repre- 
sented in  an  inclined  posi- 
tion, being  not  quite  drawn 
up,  that  the  parts  might  more 
easily  be  seen.  At  d,  there 
is  a  small  projection  of  the 
tin  upwards,  which  touches 
the  clapper  of  the  bell  sus- 
pended above,  every  time 
the  plate  passes  up  or  down, 
and  thus  give  notice  of  its 
motions. 

Of  course  the  construction 
may  be  varied  very  much, 
and  it  may  be  more  or  less  expensive,  according  to  the 
wishes  of  the  teacher.  In  the  first  apparatus  of  this  kind 
which  I  used,  the  plate  was  simply  a  card  of  pasteboard, 
from  which  the  machine  took  its  name.  This  was  cut  out 
with  a  penknife,  and  after  being  covered  with  marble  pa- 
per, a  strip  of  white  paper  was  pasted  along  the  middle, 
with  the  inscription  upon  it.  The  wire  c  c  and  a  similar 
one  at  the  top  of  the  plate,  were  passed  through  a  per- 


GENERAL     ARRANGEMENTS.  41 

foration  m  the  pasteboard,  and  then  passed  into  the  board. 
Instead  of  a  pulley,  the  cord,  which  was  a  piece  of  twine, 
was  passed  through  a  little  staple  made  of  wire  and  driven 
into  the  board.  The  whole  was  made  in  one  or  two  re- 
cesses in  school,  with  such  tools  and  materials  as  I  could 
then  command.  The  bell  was  a  common  table  bell,  with 
a  wire  passing  through  the  handle.  The  whole  was  at- 
tached to  such  a  piece  of  pine  board  as  I  could  get  on  the 
occasion.  This  coarse  contrivance  was,  for  more  than  a 
year,  the  grand  regulator  of  all  the  movements  of  the 
school. 

I  afterwards  had  one  made  in  a  better  manner.  The 
plate  is  of  tin,  gilded,  the  border  and  the  letters  of  the  in- 
scription being  black.  A  parlor  bell  rope  passes  over  a 
brass  pulley,  and  then  runs  downward  in  a  groove  made 
in  the  mahogany  board  to  which  the  card  is  attached. 

A  little  reflection  will,  however,  show  the  teacher  that 
the  form  and  construction  of  the  apparatus  for  marking 
the  times  of  study  and  of  rest,  may  be  greatly  varied.  The 
chief  point  is  simply  to  secure  the  principle,  of  whispering 
at  definite  and  limited  times,  and  at  those  alone.  If  such 
an  arrangement  is  adopted,  and  carried  faithfully  into 
effect,  it  will  be  found  to  relieve  the  teacher  of  more  than 
half  of  the  confusion  and  perplexity,  which  would  other- 
wise be  his  hourly  lot.  I  have  detailed  thus  particularly 
the  method  to  be  pursued  in  carrying  this  principle  into 
effect,  because  I  am  convinced  of  its  importance,  and  the 
incalculable  assistance  which  such  an  arrangement  wiH 
afford  to  the  teacher  in  all  his  plans.  Of  course,  I  would 
not  be  understood  to  recommend  its  adoption,  in  those 
cases,  where,  teachers,  from  their  own  experience,  have 
devised  and  adopted  other  plans,  which  accomplish  as 
effectually  the  same  purpose.  All  that  I  mean,  is  to 
insist  upon  the  absolute  necessity  of  some  plan,  to  remove 
this  very  common  source  of  interruption  and  confusion, 
and  I  recommend  this  mode  where  a  better  is  not  known. 

2.  The  second  of  the  sources  of  interruption,  as  I  have 
enumerated  them,  is  mending  pens.  This  business  ought, 
if  possible,  to  have  a  specific  time  assigned  to  it.  Scho- 

4* 


42  GENERAL    ARRANGEMENTS. 

lars  are  in  general  far  too  particular  in  regard  to  their 
pens.  The  teacher  ought  to  explain  to  them  that,  in  the 
transaction  of  the  ordinary  business  of  life,  they  cannot, 
always,  have  exactly  such  a  pen  as  they  would  like.  They 
must  learn  to  write  with  various  kinds  of  pens,  and  when 
furnished  with  one  that  the  teacher  himself  would  consider 
suitable  to  write  a  letter  to  a  friend  with,  he  must  be  con- 
tent. They  should  understand  that  the  form  of  the  letters 
is  what  is  important  in  learning  to  write,  not  the  smooth- 
ness and  clearness  of  the  hair  lines;  and  that  though 
writing  looks  better,  when  executed  with  a  perfect  pen,  a 
person  may  learn  to  write,  nearly  as  well  with  one,  which 
is  not  absolutely  perfect.  So  certain  is  this,  though  often 
overlooked,  that  a  person  would  perhaps  learn  faster  with 
chalk  upon  a  black  board,  than  with  the  best  goose-quill 
ever  sharpened. 

I  do  not  make  these  remarks  to  show  that  it  is  of  no 
consequence,  whether  scholars  have  good  or  bad  pens,  but 
only  that  this  subject  deserves  very  much  less  of  the  time 
and  attention  of  the  teacher,  than  it  usually  receives. 
When  the  scholars  are  allowed,  as  they  very  generally 
are,  to  come,  when  they  please,  to  present  their  pens, 
some  four,  five  or  six  times  in  a  day — breaking  in  upon 
any  business — interrupting  any  classes — perplexing  and 
embarrassing  the  teacher,  however  he  may  be  employed, 
-—there  is  a  very  serious  obstruction  to  the  progress  of 
the  scholars,  which  is  by  no  means  repaid  by  the  improve- 
ment in  this  branch. 

There  are  several  ways  by  which  this  evil  may  be 
remedied,  or  at  least  be  very  effectually  curtailed.  Some 
teachers  take  their  pens  with  them,  and  mend  them  in 
the  evening  at  home.  For  various  reasons,  this  cannot 
always  be  practised.  There  may,  however,  be  a  time  set 
apart  in  the  school  specially  for  this  purpose.  But  the 
best  plan  is,  for  the  teacher  not  to  mend  the  pens  him- 
self. 

Let  him  choose  from  among  the  older  and  more  intel- 
ligent of  his  scholars,  four  or  five,  whom  he  will  teach. 
They  will  be  very  glad  to  learn,  and  to  mend  every  day 
twenty-five  or  fifty  pens  each.  Very  little  ingenuity  will 


GENERAL    ARRANGEMENTS.  43 

be  necessary  to  devise  some  plan,  by  which  the  scholars 
may  be  apportioned  among  these,  so  that  each  shall  sup- 
ply a  given  number,  and  the  teacher  be  relieved  entirely. 

3.  Answering  questions  about  studies.  A  teacher  who 
does  not  adopt  some  system  in  regard  to  this  subject,  will 
be  always  at  the  mercy  of  his  scholars.  One  boy  will 
want  to  know  how  to  parse  a  word,  another  where  the 
lesson  is,  another  to  have  a  sum  explained,  and  a  fourth 
will  wish  to  show  his  work,  to  see  if  it  is  right.  The 
teacher  does  not  like  to  discourage  such  inquiries.  Each 
one,  as  it  comes  up,  seems  necessary:  each  one  too  is 
answered  in  a  moment;  but  the  endless  number,  and  the 
continual  repetition  of  them  consume  his  time  and  exhaust 
his  patience. 

There  is  another  view  of  the  subject,  which  ought  to  be 
taken.  Perhaps  it  would  not  be  far  from  the  truth,  to  es- 
timate the  average  number  of  scholars  in  the  schools  in 
our  country,  at  fifty.  At  any  rate,  this  will  be  near  enough 
for  our  present  purpose.  There  are  three  hours  in  each 
session,  making  one  hundred  and  eighty  minutes,  which, 
divided  among  fifty,  give  about  three  minutes  and  a  half 
to  each  individual.  If  the  reader  has,  in  his  own  school, 
a  greater  or  a  less  number,  he  can  easily  correct  the 
above,  so  as  to  adapt  it  to  his  own  case,  and  ascertain  the 
portion,  which  may  justly  be  appropriated  to  each  pupil. 
It  will  probably  vary  from  two  to  four  minutes.  Now  a 
period  of  four  minutes  slips  away  very  fast  while  a  man  is 
looking  over  perplexing  problems,  and  if  he  exceeds  that 
time  at  all,  he  is  doing  injustice  to  his  other  pupils.  I 
do  not  mean  that  a  man  is  to  confine  himself,  rigidly,  to 
the  principle  suggested  by  this  calculation,  of  cautiously 
appropriating  no  more  time  to  any  one  of  his  pupils,  than 
such  a  calculation  would  assign  to  each;  but  simply  that 
this  is  a  point  which  should  be  kept  in  view,  and  have  a 
very  strong  influence  in  deciding  how  far  it  is  right  to 
devote  attention,  exclusively,  to  individuals.  It  seems  to 
me  that  it  shows  very  clearly,  that  one  ought  to  teach  his 
pupils,  as  much  as  possible,  in  masses,  and  as  little  as  pos- 
sible, by  private  attention  to  individual  cases. 

The  following  directions  will  help  the  teacher  to  carry 


44  GENERAL    ARRANGEMENTS. 

these  principles  into  effect.  When  you  assign  a  lesson, 
glance  over  it  yourself,  and  consider  what  difficulties  are 
likely  to  arise.  You  know  the  progress  which  your  pu- 
pils have  made,  and  can  easily  anticipate  their  difficulties. 
Tell  them  all  together,  in  the  class,  what  their  difficulties 
will  be,  and  how  they  may  surmount  them.  Give  them 
directions  how  they  are  to  act  in  the  emergencies,  which 
will  be  likely  to  occur.  This  simple  step  will  remove  a  vast 
number  of  the  questions,  which  would  otherwise  become 
occasions  for  interrupting  you.  With  regard  to  other  dif- 
ficulties, which  cannot  be  foreseen  and  guarded  against, 
tell  them  to  bring  them  to  the  class,  the  next  recitation. 
Half  a  dozen  might,  and  very  probably  would  meet  with 
the  same  difficulty.  If  they  bring  it  to  you  one  by  one, 
you  have  to  answer  it  over  and  over  again,  whereas,  when 
it  is  brought  to  the  class,  one  explanation  answers  for  all. 

As  to  all  questions  about  the  lesson, — where  it  is,  and 
what  it  is,  and  how  long  it  is, — never  answer  them.  Re- 
quire each  pupil  to  remember  for  himself,  and  if  he  was 
absent  when  the  lesson  was  assigned,  let  him  ask  his 
class  mate  in  a  recess. 

You  may  refuse  to  give  particular  individuals  the  private 
assistance  they  ask  for,  in  such  a  way  as  to  discourage 
and  irritate  them,  but  it  is  not  necessary.  It  can  be  done 
in  such  a  manner,  that  the  pupil  will  see  the  propriety  of 
it,  and  acquiesce  pleasantly  in  it. 

A  child  comes  to  you,  for  example,  and  says, 

"  Will  you  tell  me,  sir,  where  the  next  lesson  is?  " 

<l  Were  you  not  in  the  class  at  the  time?  " 

"  Yes  sir,  but  I  have  forgotten." 

"  Well,  I  have  ^forgotten  too.  I  have  a  great  many 
classes  to  hear,  and  of  course  a  great  many  lessons  to  as- 
sign, and  I  never  remember  them;  it  is  not  necessary  for 
me  to  remember." 

"  May  I  speak  to  one  of  the  class,  to  ask  about  it?" 

tc  You  cannot  speak,  you  know,  till  the  Study  Card  is 
down;  you  may,  then." 

cc  But  I  want  to  get  my  lesson  now." 

"  I  don't  know  what  you  will  do,  then:  I  am  sorry  you 
don't  remember." 


GENERAL    ARRANGEMENTS.  45 

"  Besides,"  continues  the  teacher,  looking  pleasantly, 
however,  while  he  says  it,  "  if  I  knew,  I  think  I  ought  not 
to  tell  you." 

"Why,  sir?" 

"  Because,  you  know,  I  have  said  I  wish  the  scholars 
to  remember  where  the  lessons  are,  and  not  come  to  me. 
You  know  it  would  be  very  unwise  for  me,  after  assign- 
ing a  lesson  in  the  class,  to  spend  my  time  in  telling  the 
individuals  over  again  here.  Now  if  I  should  tell  you,  I 
should  have  to  tell  others,  and  thus  adopt  a  practice,  which 
I  have  condemned." 

Take  another  case.  You  assign  to  a  class  of  little  girls 
a  subject  of  composition,  requesting  them  to  copy  their 
writing  upon  a  sheet  of  paper,  leaving  a  margin  an  inch 
wide  at  the  top,  and  one  of  half  an  inch  at  the  sides  and 
bottom.  The  class  take  their  seats,  and,  after  a  short 
time,  one  of  them  comes  to  you,  saying  she  does  not  know 
how  long  an  inch  is. 

"  Don't  you  know  any  thing  about  it?" 

"  No  sir,  not  much." 

"  Should  you  think  that  is  more  or  less  than  an  inch?  " 
(pointing  to  a  space  on  a  piece  of  paper  much  too  large.) 

"More." 

"  Then  you  know  something  about  it.  Now  I  did  not 
tell  you  to  make  the  margins  exactly  an  inch,  and  half  an 
inch,  but  only  as  near  as  you  could  tell." 

"  Would  that  be  about  right?  "  asks  the  girl,  showing  a 
distance. 

"  I  must  not  tell  you,  because  you  know  I  never  in  such 
cases  help  individuals;  if  that  is  as  near  as  you  can  get 
it,  you  may  make  it  so." 

It  may  be  well,  after  assigning  a  lesson  to  a  class,  to 
say  that  all  those  who  do  not  distinctly  understand  what 
they  have  to  do,  may  remain  after  the  class  have  taken 
their  seats,  and  ask:  the  task  may  then  be  distinctly 
assigned  again,  and  the  difficulties,  so  far  as  they  can  be 
foreseen,  explained. 

By  such  means,  these  sources  of  interruption  and  diffi 
culty  may,  like  the  others,  be  almost  entirely  removed. 
Perhaps  not  altogether,  for  many  cases  may  occur,  where 


46  GENERAL    ARRANGEMENTS. 

the  teacher  may  choose  to  give  a  particular  class  permis- 
sion to  come  to  him  for  help.  Such  permission,  however, 
ought  never  to  be  given,  unless  it  is  absolutely  necessary, 
and  should  never  be  allowed  to  be  taken,  unless  it  is  dis- 
tinctly given. 

*  4.  Hearing  recitations.  I  am  aware  that  many  at- 
tempt to  do  something  else  at  the  same  time  that  they 
are  hearing  a  recitation,  and  there  may  perhaps  be  some 
individuals,  who  can  succeed  in  this.  If  the  exercise,  to 
which  the  teacher  is  attending,  consists  merely  in  listen- 
ing to  the  reciting,  from  memory,  some  passage  commit- 
ted, it  can  perhaps  be  done.  1  hope  however  to  show, 
in  a  future  chapter,  that  there  are  other  and  far  higher  ob- 
jects, which  every  teacher  ought  to  have  in  view,  and  he 
who  understands  these  objects,  and  aims  at  accomplishing 
them, —  who  endeavors  to  instruct  his  class,  to  enlarge 
and  elevate  their  ideas,  to  awaken  a  deep  and  paramount 
interest  in  the  subject  which  they  are  examining,  will 
find  that  his  time  must  be  his  own,  and  his  attention  unin- 
terrupted, while  he  is  presiding  at  a  class.  All  the  other 
exercises  and  arrangements  of  the  school  are,  in  fact,  pre- 
paratory and  subsidiary  to  this.  Here,  that  is,  in  the 
classes,  the  real  business  of  teaching  is  to  be  done.  Here, 
the  teacher  comes  in  contact  with  his  scholars,  mind  with 
mind,  and  here,  consequently,  he  must  be  uninterrupted 
and  undisturbed.  I  shall  speak  more  particularly  on  this 
subject  hereafter,  under  the  head  of  instruction;  all  I  wish 
to  secure  in  this  place,  is  that  the  teacher  should  make 
such  arrangements,  that  he  can  devote  his  exclusive  at- 
tention to  his  classes,  while  he  is  actually  engaged  with 
them. 

Each  recitation,  too,  should  have  its  specified  time, 
which  should  be  adhered  to,  with  rigid  accuracy.  If  any 
thing  like  the  plan  I  have  suggested  for  allowing  rests  of 
a  minute  or  two,  every  half  hour,  should  be  adopted,  it 
will  mark  off  the  forenoon  into  parts,  which  ought  to  be 
precisely  and  carefully  observed.  I  was  formerly  accus- 
tomed to  think,  that  I  could  not  limit  the  time  for  my 
recitations  without  great  inconvenience,  and  occasional- 
ly allowed  one  exercise  to  encroach  upon  the  succeed- 


GENERAL     ARRANGEMENTS. 


47 


ing,  and  this  upon  the  next,  and  thus  sometimes  the  last 
was  excluded  altogether.  But  such  a  lax  and  irregular 
method  of  procedure  is  ruinous  to  the  discipline  of  a 
school.  On  perceiving  it,  at  last,  I  put  the  bell  into  the 
hands  of  a  pupil,  commissioning  her  to  ring  regularly, 
having,  myself,  fixed  the  times,  saying  that  I  would  show 
my  pupils  that  I  could  be  confined  myself  to  system,  as 
well  as  they.  At  first,  I  experienced  a  little  inconvenience, 
but  this  soon  disappeared,  and  at  last  the  hours  and  half 
hours  of  our  artificial  division,  entirely  superseded,  in  the 
school-room,  the  divisions  of  the  clock  face. 

But  in  order  that  I  may  be  specific  and  definite,  I  will 
draw  up  a  plan  for  the  regular  division  of  time,  for  a  com- 
mon school,  not  to  be  adopted,  but  to  be  imitated;  i.  e.  I 
do  not  recommend  exactly  this  plan,  but  that  some  plan, 
precise  and  specific,  should  be  determined  upon,  and  ex- 
hibited to  the  school,  by  a  diagram  like  the  following. 


IX 


FORENOON. 


XI 


XII 


t 
Reading. 

Writing.  R.    G. 

•Arithmetic. 

II 


AFTERNOON. 
Ill  IV 


Grammar. 

Writing.  R.   G. 

Geography. 

A  drawing  on  a  large  sheet,  made  by  some  of  the  older 
scholars,  (for  a  teacher  should  never  do  any  thing  of 
this  kind  which  his  scholars  can  do  for  him,)  should 


48  GENERAL   ARRANGEMENTS. 

be  made  and  pasted  up  to  view,  the  names  of  the  class- 
es being  inserted  in  the  columns,  under  their  respective 
heads.  At  the  double  lines  at  ten  and  three,  there 
might  be  a  rest  of  two  minutes;  an  officer  appointed 
for  the  purpose,  ringing  a  bell  at  each  of  the  parts  marked 
on  the  plan,  and  making  the  signal  for  the  rest,  whatever 
signal  might  be  determined  upon.  It  is  a  good  plan  to 
have  a  bell  rung  five  minutes  before  each  half  hour  ex- 
pires, and  then  exactly  at  its  close.  The  first  one  would 
be  to  notify  the  teacher,  or  teachers,  if  there  are  more 
than  one  in  the  school,  that  the  time  for  their  respective 
recitations  is  drawing  to  a  close.  At  the  second  bell 
the  new  classes  should  take  their  places  without  waiting 
to  be  called  for.  The  scholars  will  thus  see  that  the 
arrangements  of  the  school  are  based  upon  system,  to 
which  the  teacher  himself  conforms,  and  not  subjected  to 
his  own  varying  will.  They  will  thus  not  only  go  on 
more  regularly,  but  they  will  yield  more  easily  and  pleas- 
antly to  the  necessary  arrangements. 

The  fact  is,  children  love  system  and  regularity.  Each 
one  is  sometimes  a  little  uneasy  under  the  restraint,  which 
it  imposes  upon  him  individually,  but  they  all  love  to  see 
its  operation  upon  others,  and  they  are  generally  very 
willing  to  submit  to  its  laws,  if  the  rest  of  the  community 
are  required  to  submit  too.  They  show  this  in  their  love 
of  military  parade ;  what  allures  them  is  chiefly  the  order 
of  it:  and  even  a  little  child  creeping  upon  the  floor  will 
be  pleased  when  he  gets  his  playthings  in  a  row.  A 
teacher  may  turn  this  principle  to  most  useful  account,  in 
forming  his  plans  for  his  school. 

It  will  be  seen  by  reference  to  the  foregoing  plan,  that 
I  have  marked  the  time  for  the  recesses,  by  the  letter  R. 
at  the  top.  Immediately  after  them,  both  in  the  forenoon 
and  in  the  afternoon,  twenty  minutes  are  left,  marked 
G.,  the  initial  standing  for  General  exercise.  They  are 
intended  to  denote  periods  during  which  all  the  scholars 
are  in  their  seats  with  their  work  laid  aside,  ready  to  at- 
tend to  what  the  teacher  has  to  bring  before  the  whole. 
There  are  so  many  occasions,  on  which  it  is  necessary  lo 
address  the  whole  school,  that  it  is  very  desirable  to  ap- 


GENERAL    ARRANGEMENTS.  49 

propriate  a  particular  time  for  it.  In  most  of  the  best 
schools,  I  believe  this  plan  is  adopted.  I  will  mention 
some  of  the  subjects,  which  would  come  up  at  such  a 
time. 

1.  There  are  some  studies,  which  can  be  advantage- 
ously attended  to  by  the  whole  school  together;  such  as 
Punctuation,  and,  to  some  extent,  Spelling. 

2.  Cases  of  discipline,  which  it  is  necessary  to  bring 
before  the  whole  school,  ought  to  come  up  at  a  regularly 
appointed  time.     By  attending  to  them  here,  there  will  be 
a  greater  importance  attached  to  them.     Whatever  the 
teacher  does,  will  seem  to  be  more  deliberate,  and,  in  fact, 
will  be  more  deliberate. 

3.  General   remarks,    bringing   up   classes   of  faults 
which  prevail;    also  general  directions,  which  may  at  any 
time  be  needed:  and  in  fact  any  business  relating  to  the 
general  arrangements  of  the  school. 

4.  Familiar  lectures  from  the  teacher,  on  various  sub- 
jects,— very  familiar  in  their  form,  and  perhaps  accompa- 
nied by  questions  addressed  to  the  whole.     The  design  of 
such  lectures  should  be  to  extend  the  general  knowledge 
of  the  pupils  in  regard  to  those  subjects  on  which  they 
will  need  information  in  their  progress  through  life.     In 
regard  to  each  of  these  particulars!  shall  speak  more  par- 
ticularly hereafter,  in  the  chapters  to  which  they  respect- 
ively belong.     My  only  object,  here,  is  to  show,  in  the 
general  arrangements  of  the  school,  how  a  place  is  to  be 
found  for  them.     My  practice  has  been,  to  have  two  pe- 
riods, of  short  duration,  each  day,  appropriated  to  these 
objects.     The  first  to  the  business  of  the  school,  and  the 
second  to  such  studies  or  lectures  as  could  be  most  profit- 
ably attended  to  at  such  a  time. 

We  come  now  to  one  of  the  most  important  subjects, 
which  present  themselves  to  the  teacher's  attention,  in 
settling  the  principles  upon  which  he  shall  govern  his 
school.  I  mean  the  degree  of  influence  which  the  boys 
themselves  shall  have  in  the  management  of  its  affairs. 
Shall  the  government  of  school  be  a  monarchy  or  a  re- 
public! To  this  question,  after  much  inquiry  and  many 
5 


50  GENERAL    ARRANGEMENTS. 

experiments,  I  answer,  a  monarchy;  an  absolute,  unlimited 
monarchy;  the  teacher  possessing  exclusive  power,  as  far 
as  the  pupils  are  concerned,  though  strictly  responsible  to 
the  committee,  or  to  the  trustees,  under  whom  he  holds 
his  office. 

While,  however,  it  is  thus  distinctly  understood  that 
the  power  of  the  teacher  is  supreme,  that  all  the  power 
rests  in  him,  and  that  he  alone  is  responsible  for  its  exer- 
cise, there  ought  to  be  a  very  free  and  continual  dele- 
gation of  power  to  the  pupils.  As  much  business  as  is 
possible,  should  be  committed  to  them.  They  should  be 
interested  as  much  as  possible  in  the  affairs  of  the  school, 
and  led  to  take  an  active  part  in  carrying  them  forward; 
though  they  should,  all  the  time,  distinctly  understand, 
that  it  is  only  delegated  power  which  they  exercise,  and 
that  the  teacher  can,  at  any  time,  revoke  what  he  has 
granted,  and  alter  or  annul  at  pleasure,  any  of  their  de- 
cisions. By  this  plan,  we  have  the  responsibility  resting 
where  it  ought  to  rest,  and  yet  the  boys  are  trained  to 
business,  and  led  to  take  an  active  interest  in  the  welfare 
of  the  school.  Trust  is  reposed  in  them,  which  may  be 
greater  or  less,  as  they  are  able  to  bear.  All  the  good 
effects  of  reposing  trust  arid  confidence,  and  committing 
the  management  of  important  business  to  the  pupils  will  be 
secured,  without  the  dangers  which  would  result  from  the 
entire  surrender  of  the  management  of  the  institution  into 
their  hands. 

There  have  been,  in  several  cases,  experiments  made 
with  reference  to  ascertaining  how  far  a  government, 
strictly  republican,  would  be  admissible  in  a  school.  A 
very  fair  experiment  of  this  kind  was  made  at  the  Gardiner 
Lyceum,  in  Maine.  At  the  time  of  its  establishment, 
nothing  was  said  of  the  mode  of  government  which  it  was 
intended  to  adopt.  For  some  time,  the  attention  of  the 
Instructers  was  occupied  in  arranging  the  course  of  study, 
and  attending  to  the  other  concerns  of  the  Institution,  and 
in  the  infant  state  of  the  Lyceum,  few  cases  of  discipline 
occurred,  and  no  regular  system  of  government  was 
necessary. 

Before  long,  however,  complaints  were  made  that  the 


GENERAL    ARRANGEMENTS.  51 

students  at  the  Lyceum  were  guilty  of  breaking  windows 
in  an  old  building  used  as  a  town-house.  The  Principal 
called  the  students  together,  mentioned  the  reports,  and 
said  that  he  did  not  know,  and  did  not  wish  to  know  who 
were  the  guilty  individuals.  It  was  necessary,  however, 
that  the  thing  should  be  examined,  and  that  restitution 
should  be  made;  and  relying  on  their  faithfulness  and 
ability,  he  should  leave  them  to  manage  the  business  alone. 
For  this  purpose,  he  nominated  one  of  the  students  as 
judge,  some  others  as  jury-men,  and  appointed  the  other 
officers  necessary,  in  the  same  manner.  He  told  them, 
that,  in  order  to  give  them  time  to  make  a  thorough  inves- 
tigation, they  were  excused  from  farther  exercises  during 
the  day. 

The  Principal  then  left  them,  and  they  entered  on  the 
trial.  The  result  was,  that  they  discovered  the  guilty  in- 
dividuals, ascertained  the  amount  of  mischief  done  by 
each,  and  sent  to  the  selectmen  a  message,  by  which  they 
agreed  to  pay  a  sum  equal  to  three  times  the  value  of  the 
injury  sustained. 

The  students  were  soon  after  informed  that  this  mode 
of  bringing  offenders  to  justice  would,  hereafter,  be  always 
pursued,  and  arrangements  were  made  for  organizing  a 
regular  republican  government,  among  the  young  men. 
By  this  government,  all  laws  which  related  to  the  internal 
police  of  the  Institution,  were  to  be  made,  all  officers  were 
appointed,  and  all  criminal  cases  were  to  be  tried.  The 
students  finding  the  part  of  a  judge  too  difficult  for  them 
to  sustain,  one  of  the  Professors  was  appointed  to  hold 
that  office,  and,  for  similar  reasons,  another  of  the  Profes- 
sors was  made  President  of  the  Legislative  assembly. 
The  Principal  was  the  Executive,  with  power  to  pardon, 
but  not  to  sentence,  or  even  accuse. 

Some  time  after  this,  a  student  was  indicted  for  profane 
swearing;  he  was  tried,  convicted,  and  punished.  After 
this  he  evinced  a  strong  hostility  to  the  government.  He 
made  great  exertions  to  bring  it  into  contempt,  and  when 
the  next  trial  came  on,  he  endeavored  to  persuade  the  wit- 
nesses that  giving  evidence  was  dishonorable,  and  he  so 
far  succeeded,  that  the  defendant  was  acquitted  for  want 


52  GENERAL    ARRANGEMENTS. 

of  evidence,  when  it  was  generally  understood  that  there 
was  proof  of  his  guilt,  which  would  have  been  satisfactory, 
if  it  could  have,  been  brought  forward.  For  some  time 
after  this,  the  prospect  was  rather  unfavorable,  though 
many  of  the  students  themselves  opposed  with  great 
earnestness  these  efforts,  and  were  much  alarmed  lest  they 
should  lose  their  free  government,  through  the  perverse- 
ness  of  one  of  their  number.  The  attorney  general,  at 
this  juncture,  conceived  the  idea  of  indicting  the  individual 
alluded  to,  for  an  attempt  to  overturn  the  government. 
He  obtained  the  approbation  of  the  Principal,  and  the 
Grand  Jury  found  a  bill.  The  Court,  as  the  case  was  so 
important,  invited  some  of  the  Trustees  of  the  Lyceum 
who  were  in  town,  to  attend  the  trial.  The  parent  of  the 
defendant  was  also  informed  of  the  circumstances  and 
requested  to  be  present,  and  he  accordingly  attended. 
The  prisoner  was  tried,  found  guilty,  and  sentenced,  'if  I 
mistake  not,  to  an  expulsion.  At  his  earnest  request, 
however,  to  be  permitted  to  remain  in  the  Lyceum,  and 
redeem  his  character,  he  was  pardoned  and  restored,  and 
became  perfectly  exemplary  in  his  conduct  and  character. 
After  this  occurrence,  the  system  went  on  in  successful 
operation,  for  some  time. 

The  legislative  power  was  vested  in  the  hands  of  a  gen- 
eral committee,  consisting  of  eight  or  ten,  chosen  by  the 
students  from  their  own  number.  They  met  about  once 
a  week  to  transact  such  business  as  appointing  officers^ 
making  and  repealing  regulations,  and  inquiring  into  the 
state  of  the  Lyceum.  The  Instructers  had  a  negative 
upon  all  their  proceedings,  but  no  direct  and  positive  pow- 
er. They  could  pardon,  but  they  could  assign  no  punish- 
ments, nor  make  laws  inflicting  any. 

Now  such  a  plan  as  this  may  succeed  for  a  short  time, 
and  under  very  favorable  circumstances;  and  the  circum- 
stance, which  it  is  chiefly  important  should  be  favorable, 
is,  that  the  man  who  is  called  to  preside  over  such  an  as- 
sociation, should  possess  such  a  share  of  generalship,  that 
he  can  really  manage  the  institution  himself,  while  the 
power  is  nominally  and  apparently  in  the  hands  of  the  boys. 
Should  this  not  be  the  case,  or  should  the  teacher,  from 


GENERAL    ARRANGEMENTS.  53 

any  cause,  lose  his  personal  influence  in  the  school,  so  that 
the  institution  should  really  be  surrendered  into  the  hands 
of  the  pupils,  things  must  be  on  a  very  unstable  footing. 
And  accordingly  where  such  a  plan  has  been  adopted,  it 
has,  I  believe,  in  every  instance,  been  ultimately  aban- 
doned. 

Real  self-government  is  an  experiment  sufficiently  haz- 
ardous among  men;  though  Providence,  in  making  a  daily 
supply  of  food  necessary  for  every  human  being,  has  im- 
posed a  most  powerful  check  upon  the  tendency  to  anarchy 
and  confusion.  Let  the  populace  of  London  materially 
interrupt  the  order,  and  break  in  upon  the  arrangements 
of  the  community,  and,  in  eight  and  forty  hours,  nearly  the 
whole  of  the  mighty  mass  will  be  in  the  hands  of  the  de- 
vourer,  hunger;  and  they  will  be  soon  brought  to  submis- 
sion. On  the  other  hand,  a  month's  anarchy  and  confusion 
in  a  college  or  an  academy,  would  be  delight  to  half  the 
students,  or  else  times  have  greatly  changed,  since  I  was 
within  college  walls. 

Although  it  is  thus  evident  that  the  important  concerns 
of  a  literary  institution  cannot  be  safely  committed  into  the 
hands  of  the  students,  very  great  benefits  will  result  from 
calling  upon  them  to  act  upon,  and  to  decide  questions 
relative  to  the  school,  within  such  limits,  and  under  such 
restrictions,  as  may  appear  best.  Such  a  practice  will 
assist  the  teacher  very  much,  if  he  manages  it  with  any 
degree  of  dexterity:  for  it  will  interest  his  pupils  in  the 
success  of  the  school,  and  secure,  to  a  very  considerable 
extent,  their  cooperation.  It  will  teach  them  self-control 
and  self-government,  and  will  accustom  them  to  submit  to 
the  majority, — that  lesson,  which,  of  all  others,  it  is  im- 
portant for  a  republican  to  learn. 

In  endeavoring  to  interest  the  pupils  of  a  school  in  the 
work  of  cooperating  with  the  teacher  in  its  administration, 
no  little  dexterity  will  be  necessary,  at  the  outset.  In  all 
probability,  the  formal  announcement  of  this  principle,  and 
the  endeavor  to  introduce  it,  by  a  sudden  revolution,  would 
totally  fail.  Boys,  like  men,  must  be  gradually  prepared 
for  power,  and  they  must  exercise  it  only  so  far  as  they 
are  prepared.  This  however  can,  very  easily,  be  done. 

5* 


54  GENERAL    ARRANGEMENTS. 

The  teacher  should  say  nothing  of  his  general  design,  but 
when  some  suitable  opportunity  presents,  he  should  en- 
deavor to  lead  his  pupils  to  cooperate  with  him,  in  some 
particular  instance. 

For  example,  let  us  suppose  that  he  has  been  accustom- 
ed to  distribute  the  writing-books  with  his  own  hand,  when 
the  writing  hour  arrives,  and  that  he  concludes  to  dele- 
gate this  simple  business,  first,  to  his  scholars.  He  ac- 
cordingly states  to  them,  just  before  the  writing  exercise 
of  the  day  on  which  he  proposes  the  experiment,  as  fol- 
lows. 

"  I  have  thought  that  time  will.be  saved,  if  you  will 
help  me  distribute  the  books,  and  I  will  accordingly  ap- 
point four  distributors,  one  for  each  division  of  the  seats, 
who  may  come  to  me,  and  receive  the  books  and  distri- 
bute them,  each  to  his  own  division.  Are  you  willing  to 
adopt  this  plan?" 

The  boys  answer,  "Yes  sir,"  and  the  teacher  then 
looks  carefully  around  the  room,  and  selects  four  pleasant 
and  popular  boys,-^boys  who,  he  knows,  would  gladly  as- 
sist him,  and  who  would,  at  the  same  time,  be  agreeable 
to  their  school  mates.  This  latter  point  is  necessary,  in 
order  to  secure  the  popularity  and  success  of  the  plan. 

Unless  the  boys  are  very  different  from  any  I  have  ever 
met  with,  they  will  be  pleased  with  the  duty  thus  assign- 
ed them.  They  will  learn  system  and  regularity  by  be- 
ing taught  to  perform  this  simple  duty  in  a  proper  man- 
ner. After  a  week,  the  teacher  may  consider  their  term 
of  service  as  having  expired,  and  thanking  them,  in  pub- 
lic for  the  assistance  they  have  rendered  him,  he  may  ask 
the  scholars,  if  they  are  willing  to  continue  the  plan,  and 
if  the  vote  is  in  favor  of  it,  as  it  unquestionably  would  be, 
each  boy  probably  hoping  that  he  should  be  appointed  to 
the  office,  the  teacher  may  nominate  four  others,  inclu- 
ding perhaps  upon  the  list,  some  boy  popular  among  his 
companions,  but  whom  he  has  suspected  to  be  not  very 
friendly  to  himself  or  the  school.  I  think  the  most  scru- 
pulous politician  would  not  object  to  securing  influence, 
by  conferring  office  in  such  a  case.  If  any  difficulties 
arise  from  the  operation  of  such  a  measure,  it  can  easily 


GENERAL    ARRANGEMENTS.  55 

be  dropped,  or  modified.  If  it  is  successful,  it  may  be 
continued,  and  the  principle  extended,  till  it  very  consid- 
erably modifies  all  the  arrangements,  and  the  whole  man- 
agement of  the  school. 

Or  let  us  imagine  the  following  scene  to  have  been  the 
commencement  of  the  introduction  of  the  principle  of  lim- 
ited self-government,  into  a  school. 

The  preceptor  of  an  academy  was  sitting  at  his  desk, 
at  the  close  of  school,  while  the  pupils  were  putting  up 
their  books  and  leaving  the  room;  a  boy  came  in  with 
angry  looks,  and,  with  his  hat  in  his  hands  bruised  and 
dusty,  advanced  to  the  master's  desk,  and  complained  that 
one  of  his  companions  had  thrown  down  his  hat  upon  the 
floor,  and  had  almost  spoilt  it. 

The  teacher  looked  calmly  at  the  mischief,  and  then 
asked  how  it  happened. 

"  I  don't  know  sir;  I  hung  it  up  on  my  nail,  and  he 
pulled  it  down." 

"  I  wish  you  would  ask  him  to  come  here,"  said  the 
teacher.  "  Ask  him  pleasantly." 

The  accused  soon  came  in,  and  the  two  boys  stood  to- 
gether before  the  master. 

"  There  seems  to  be  some  difficulty  between  you  boys, 
about  a  nail  to  hang  your  hats  upon.  I  suppose  each  of 
you  think  it  is  your  own  nail." 

16  Yes  sir,"  said  both  the  boys. 

"  It  will  be  more  convenient  for  me  to  talk  with  you 
about  this  to-morrow,  than  to-night,  if  you  are  willing  to 
wait.  Besides,  we  can  examine  it  more  calmly,  then. 
But  if  we  put  it  off  till  then,  you  must  not  talk  about  it 
in  the  meantime,  blaming  one  another,  and  keeping  up 
the  irritation  that  you  feel.  Are  you  both  willing  to  leave 
it  just  where  it  is,  till  to-morrow,  and  try  to  forget  all 
about  it  till  then?  I  expect  I  shall  find  you  both  a  little 
to  blame." 

The  boys  rather  reluctantly  consented.  The  next  day 
the  master  heard  the  case  and  settled  it,  so  far  as  it  relat- 
ed to  the  two  boys.  It  was  easily  settled  in  the  morning, 
for  they  had  had  time  to  get  calm,  and  were,  after  sleeping 
away  their  anger,  rather  ashamed  of  the  whole  affair,  and 
very  desirous  to  have  it  forgotten 


56  GENERAL    ARRANGEMENTS. 

That  day,  when  the  hour  for  the  transaction  of  business 
came,  the  teacher  stated  to  the  school,  that  it  was  neces- 
sary to  take  some  measures  to  provide  each  boy  with  a  nail 
for  his  hat.  In  order  to  show  that  it  was  necessary,  he  re- 
lated the  circumstances  of  the  quarrel  which  had  occurred 
the  day  before.  He  did  this,  not  with  such  an  air  and 
manner  as  to  convey  the  impression  that  his  object  was  to 
find  fault  with  the  boys,  or  to  expose  their  misconduct,  but 
to  show  the  necessity  of  doing  something  to  remedy  the 
evil,  which  had  been  the  cause  of  so  unpleasant  an  occur- 
rence. Still,  though  he  said  nothing  in  the  way  of  re- 
proach or  reprehension,  and  did  not  name  the  boys,  but 
merely  gave  a  cool  and  impartial  narrative  of  the  facts, — 
the  effect,  very  evidently,  was  to  bring  such  quarrels  into 
discredit.  A  calm  review  of  misconduct,  after  the  excite- 
ment has  gone  by,  will  do  more  to  bring  it  into  disgrace, 
than  the  most  violent  invectives  and  reproaches,  directed 
against  the  individuals  guilty  of  it. 

"Now  boys,"  continued  the  master,  "will  you  assist 
me  in  making  arrangements  to  prevent  the  recurrence 
of  all  temptations  of  this  kind  hereafter?  It  is  plain  that 
every  boy  ought  to  have  a  nail  appropriated  expressly  to 
his  use.  The  first  thing  to  be  done  is,  to  ascertain  wheth- 
er there  are  enough  for  all.  I  should  like,  therefore,  to 
have  two  committees  appointed;  one,  to  count  and  report 
the  number  of  nails  in  the  entry,  and  also  how  much  room 
there  is  for  more;  the  other,  to  ascertain  the  number  of 
scholars  in  school.  They  can  count  all  who  are  here, 
and  by  observing  the  vacant  desks,  they  can  ascertain  the 
number  absent.  When  this  investigation  is  made,  I  will 
tell  you  what  to  do  next." 

The  boys  seemed  pleased  with  the  plan,  and  the  com- 
mittees were  appointed,  two  members  on  each.  The  mas- 
ter took  care  to  give  the  quarrellers  some  share  in  the 
work,  apparently  forgetting,  from  this  time,  the  unpleasant 
occurrence  which  had  brought  up  the  subject. 

When  the  boys  came  to  tell  him  their  results,  he  asked 
them  to  make  a  little  memorandum,  in  writing,  as  he 
might  forget,  before  the  time  came  for  reading  them. 
They  brought  him  presently  a  rough  scrap  of  paper,  with 


GENERAL    ARRANGEMENTS.  57 

the  figures  marked  upon  it.  He  told  them  he  should  for- 
get which  was  the  number  of  nails,  and  which  the  number 
of  scholars,  unless  they  wrote  it  down. 

"  It  is  the  custom  among  men,"  said  he,  ff  to  make  out 
their  report,  in  such  a  case,  fully,  so  that  it  would  explain 
itself;  and  I  should  like  to  have  you,  if  you  are  willing,  to 
make  out  yours  a  little  more  distinctly." 

Accordingly,  after  a  little  additional  explanation,  the 
boys  made  another  attempt,  and  presently  returned,  with 
something  like  the  following : 

"  The  Committee  for  counting  the  nails  report  as  follows . 
Number  of  nails  35 

Room  for  15." 

The  other  report  was  very  similar,  though  somewhat 
rudely  written  and  expressed,  and  both  were  perfectly 
satisfactory  to  the  preceptor,  as  he  plainly  showed  by  the 
manner  in  which  he  received  them. 

I  need  not  finish  the  description  of  this  case,  by  narrat- 
ing, particularly,  the  reading  of  the  reports,  the  appoint- 
ment of  a  committee  to  assign  the  nails,  and  to  paste  up 
the  names  of  the  scholars,  one  to  each.  The  work,  in 
such  a  case,  might  be  done  in  recesses,  and  out  of  school 
hours,  and  though,  at  first,  the  teacher  will  find,  that  it 
is  as  much  trouble  to  accomplish  business  in  this  way,  as 
it  would  be  to  attend  to  it  directly  himself, — yet  after  a 
very  little  experience,  he  will  find  that  his  pupils  will  ac- 
quire dexterity  and  readiness,  and  will  be  able  to  render 
him  very  material  assistance  in  the  accomplishment  of  his 
plans. 

This,  however,  the  assistance  rendered  to  the  teacher, 
is  not  the  object.  The  main  design  is  to  interest  the  pu- 
pils, in  the  management  and  the  welfare  of  the  school, 
— to  identify  them,  as  it  were,  with  it.  It  will  accomplish 
this  object;  and  every  teacher,  who  will  try  the  experi- 
ment, and  carry  it  into  effect,  with  any  tolerable  degree 
of  skill,  will  find  that  it  will,  in  a  short  time,  change  the 
whole  aspect  of  the  school,  in  regard  to  the  feelings  sub- 
sisting between  himself  and  his  pupils. 


58  GENERAL     ARRANGEMENTS. 

Each  teacher,  who  tries  such  an  experiment,  will  find 
himself  insensibly  repeating  it,  and  after  a  time  he  may 
have  quite  a  number  of  officers  and  committees,  who  are 
entrusted  with  various  departments  of  business.  He  will 
have  a  secretary,  chosen  by  ballot,  by  the  scholars,  to 
keep  a  record  of  all  the  important  transactions  in  the 
school,  for  each  day.  At  first,  he  will  dictate  to  the  sec- 
retary, telling  him  precisely  what  to  say,  or  even  writing 
it  for  him,  and  merely  requiring  him  to  copy  it  into  the 
book  provided  for  the  purpose.  Afterwards  he  will  give 
him  less  and  less  assistance,  till  he  can  keep  the  record 
properly  himself.  The  record  of  each  day  will  be  read 
on  the  succeeding,  at  the  hour  for  business.  He  will  have 
a  committee  of  one  or  two  to  take  care  of  the  fire,  and 
another  to  see  that  the  room  is  constantly  in  good  order. 
He  will  have  distributors  for  each  division  of  seats,  to  dis- 
tribute books,  and  compositions,  and  pens,  and  to  collect 
votes.  And  thus,  in  a  short  time,  his  school  will  become 
regularly  organized,  as  a  society,  or  legislative  assembly. 
The  boys  will  learn  submission  to  the  majority,  in  such 
unimportant  things  as  may  be  committed  to  them:  they 
will  learn  system  and  regularity ;  and  every  thing  else  that 
belongs  to  the  science  of  political  self  government. 

There  are  dangers,  however.  What  useful  practice  has 
not  its  dangers?  One  of  these  is,  that  the  teacher  will 
allow  these  arrangements  to  take  up  too  much  time.  He 
must  guard  against  this.  I  have  found  from  experience 
that  fifteen  minutes  each  day,  with  a  school  of  135,  is 
enough.  This  ought  never  to  be  exceeded. 

Another  danger  is,  that  the  boys  will  be  so  engaged  in 
the  duties  of  their  offices,  as  to  neglect  their  studies.  This 
would  be,  and  ought  to  be,  fatal  to  the  whole  plan.  Avoid 
it  in  this  manner.  State  publicly  that  you  will  not  appoint 
any  to  office,  who  are  not  good  scholars,  always  punctual, 
and  always  prepared;  and  when  any  boy,  who  holds  an 
office,  is  going  behind  hand  in  his  studies,  say  to  him 
kindly,  "  You  have  not  time  to  get  your  lessons,  and  I  arn 
afraid  it  is  owing  to  the  time  you  spend  in  helping  me. 
Now  if  you  wish  to  resign  your  office,  so  as  to  have  a 
little  more  time  for  your  lessons,  you  can.  In  fact,  I  think 


GENERAL    ARRANGEMENTS.  59 

you  ought  to  do  it.     You  may  try  it  for  a  day  or  two,  and 
I  will  notice  how  you  recite,  and  then  we  can  decide." 

Such  a  communication  will  generally  be  found  to  have 
a  powerful  effect.  If  it  does  not  remedy  the  evil,  the  res- 
ignation must  be  insisted  on.  A  few  decided  cases  of  this 
kind,  will  effectually  remove  the  evil  I  am  considering. 

Another  difficulty,  which  is  likely  to  attend  the  plan  of 
allowing  the  pupils  of  the  school  to  decide  some  of  the 
cases  which  occur,  is,  that  it  may  tend  to  make  them  in- 
subordinate; so  that  they  will,  in  many  instances,  submit, 
with  less  good  humor,  to  such  decisions  as  you  may  con- 
sider necessary.  I  do  not  mean  that  this  will  be  the  case 
with  all,  but  that  there  will  be  a  few,  who  will  be  ungen- 
erous enough,  if  you  allow  them  to  decide,  sometimes,  to 
endeavor  to  make  trouble,  or  at  least  to  show  symptoms 
of  impatience  and  vexation,  because  you  do  not  allow  them 
to  decide  always. 

Sometimes  this  feeling  may  show  itself  by  the  discon- 
tented looks,  or  gestures,  or  even  words,  with  which  some 
unwelcome  decision  will  be  received.  Such  a  spirit  should 
be  immediately  and  decidedly  checked.  It  will  not  be 
difficult  to  check,  and  even  entirely  to  remove  it.  On 
one  occasion,  when,  after  learning  the  wishes  of  the 
scholars  on  some  subject  which  had  been  brought  before 
them,  I  decided  contrary  to  it,  there  arose  a  murmur  of 
discontent,  all  over  the  room.  This  was  the  more  distinct, 
because  I  have  always  accustomed  my  pupils  to  answer 
questions  asked,  and  to  express  their  wishes  and  feelings 
on  any  subject  I  may  present  to  them,  with  great  freedom. 

I  asked  all  those,  who  had  expressed  their  dissatisfac- 
tion, to  rise. 

About  one  third  of  the  scholars  arose. 

"  Perhaps  you  understopd,  that  when  I  put  the  question 
to  vote,  I  meant  to  abide  by  your  decision,  and  that,  con- 
sequently, I  ought  not  to  have  reversed  it,  as  I  did,  after- 
wards? " 

"  Yes  sir;"  "  yes  sir;"  they  replied. 

"  Do  you  suppose  it  would  be  safe  to  leave  the  decision 
of  important  questions  to  the  scholars  in  this  school  ?  " 


60  GENERAL     ARRANGEMENTS. 

"  Yes  sir;"  "  No  sir."  The  majority  were,  however, 
in  the  affirmative. 

Thus  far,  only  those  who  were  standing,  had  answered. 
I  told  them,  that  as  they  were  divided  in  opinion,  they 
might  sit,  and  I  would  put  the  question  to  the  whole  school. 

"  You  know,"  I  continued,  addressing  the  whole, 
"what  sort  of  persons  the  girls,  who  compose  this  school 
are.  You  know  about  how  many  are  governed,  habitu- 
ally, by  steady  principle,  and  how  many  by  impulse  and 
feeling.  You  know  too,  what  proportion  have  judgment 
and  foresight  necessary  to  consider  and  decide  independ- 
ently, such  questions  as  continually  arise  in  the  manage- 
ment-of  a  school.  Now  suppose  I  should  resign  the 
school  into  your  own  hands,  as  to  its  management,  and 
only  come  in  to  give  instruction  to  the  classes,  leaving  all 
general  control  of  its  arrangements  with  you;  would  it  go 
on  safely  or  not?  " 

As  might  have  been  foreseen,  there  was,  when  the 
question  was  fairly  proposed,  scarcely  a  solitary  vote  in 
favor  of  government  by  scholars.  They  seemed  to  see 
clearly  the  absurdity  of  such  a  scheme. 

cc  Besides,"  I  continued,  "  the  Trustees  of  this  school 
have  committed  it  to  my  charge ;  they  hold  me  responsi- 
ble; the  public  hold  me  responsible,  not  you.  Now  if  I 
should  surrender  it  into  your  hands,  and  you,  from  any 
cause,  should  manage  the  trust  unfaithfully,  or  unskil- 
fully, I  should  necessarily  be  held  accountable.  I  could 
never  shift  the  responsibility  upon  you.  Now  it  plainly  is 
not  just  or  right,  that  one  party  should  hold  the  power, 
and  another  be  held  accountable  for  its  exercise.  It  is 
clear,  therefore,  in  every  view  of  the  subject,  that  I  should 
retain  the  management  of  this  school  in  my  own  hands. 
Are  you  not  satisfied  that  it  is?  " 

The  scholars  universally  answered,  "  Yes  sir."  They 
seemed  satisfied;  and  doubtless  were. 

It  was  then  stated  to  them,  that  the  object  in  asking 
them  to  vote,  was,  in  some  cases,  to  obtain  an  expression 
of  their  opinion  or  their  wishes,  in  order  to  help  me  de- 
cide; and  only  in  those  cases  where  it  was  expressly 
stated,  did  I  mean  to  give  the  final  decision  to  them. 


GENERAL    ARRANGEMENTS.  61 

Still,  however,  if  cases  are  often  referred  to  them,  the 
feeling  will  gradually  creep  in,  that  the  school  is  managed 
on  republican  principles,  as  they  call  it;  and  they  will, 
unless  this  point  is  specially  guarded,  gradually  lose  that 
spirit  of  entire  and  cordial  subordination,  so  necessary  for 
the  success  of  any  school.  It  should  often  be  distinctly 
explained  to  them,  that  a  republican  government  is  one, 
where  the  power  essentially  resides  in  the  community,  and 
is  exercised  by  a  ruler,  only  so  far  as  the  community  dele- 
gates it  to  him;  whereas  in  the  school,  the  government  is 
based  on  the  principle,  that  the  power,  primarily  and  es- 
sentially, resides  in  the  teacher,  the  scholars  exercising 
only  such  as  he  may  delegate  to  them. 

With  these  limitations  and  restrictions,  and  with  this 
express  understanding,  in  regard  to  what  is,  in  all  cases, 
the  ultimate  authority,  I  think  there  will  be  no  danger  in 
throwing  a  very  large  share  of  the  business  which  will, 
from  time  to  time,  come  up  in  the  school,  upon  the  schol- 
ars, for  decision.  In  my  own  experience,  this  plan  has 
been  adopted  with  the  happiest  results.  A  small  red  mo 
rocco  wrapper  lies  constantly  on  a  little  shelf,  accessible 
to  all.  By  its  side,  is  a  little  pile  of  papers,  about  one 
inch  by  six,  on  which  any  one  may  write  her  motion,  or 
her  proposition,  as  they  call  it,  whatever  it  may  be,  and 
when  written,  it  is  enclosed  in  the  wrapper,  to  be  brought 
to  me  at  the  appointed  time  for  attending  to  the  general 
business  of  the  school.  Through  this  wrapper,  all  ques- 
tions are  asked,  all  complaints  entered,  all  proposals  made, 
Is  there  discontent  in  the  school?  It  shows  itself  by 
"propositions  "  in  the  wrapper.  Is  any  body  aggrieved  or 
injured  ?  I  learn  it  through  the  wrapper.  In  fact  it  is  a 
little  safety  valve,  which  lets  off,  what,  if  confined,  might 
threaten  explosion, — an  index, — a  thermometer,  which  re- 
veals to  me,  from  day  to  day,  more  of  the  state  of  public 
opinion  in  the  little  community,  than  any  thing  beside. 

These  propositions  are  generally  read  aloud;  some 
cases  are  referred  to  the  scholars  for  decision;  some  I  de- 
cide myself;  others  are  laid  aside  without  notice  of  any 
kind;  others  still,  merely  suggest  remarks  on  the  subjects 
to  which  they  allude. 

6 


62  GENERAL     ARRANGEMENTS. 

The  principles,  then,  which  this  chapter  has  been  in- 
tended to  establish,  are  simply  these:  in  making  your 
general  arrangements,  look  carefully  over  your  ground, 
consider  all  the  objects  which  you  have  to  accomplish, 
and  the  proper  degree  of  time  and  attention,  which  each 
deserves.  Then  act  upon  system.  Let  the  mass  of  par- 
ticulars which  would  otherwise  crowd  upon  you  in  pro- 
miscuous confusion,  be  arranged  and  classified.  Let  each 
be  assigned  to  its  proper  time  and  place;  that  your  time 
may  be  your  own, — under  your  own  command, — and  not, 
as  is  too  often  the  case,  at  the  mercy  of  the  thousand  ac- 
cidental circumstances,  which  may  occur. 

In  government,  be  yourself  supreme,  and  let  your  supre- 
macy be  that  of  authority.  But  delegate  power,  as  freely 
as  possible,  to  those  under  your  care.  Show  them  that  you 
are  desirous  of  reposing  trust  in  them,  just  so  far  as  they 
show  themselves  capable  of  exercising  it,-  Thus  interest 
them  in  your  plans,  and  make  them  feel,  that  they  partici- 
pate in  the  honor  or  the  disgrace  of  success  or  failure. 

I  have  gone  much  into  detail  in  this  chapter,  proposing 
definite  measures  by  which  the  principles  I  have  recom- 
mended, may  be  carried  into  effect.  I  wish,  however, 
that  it  may  be  distinctly  understood,  that  all  I  contend 
for,  is  the  principles  themselves;  no  matter  what  the  par- 
ticular measures  are,  by  which  they  are  secured.  Every 
good  school  must  be  systematic ;  but  they  need  not  all  be 
on  precisely  the  same  system.  As  this  work  is  intend- 
ed almost  exclusively  for  beginners,  much  detail  has  been 
admitted,  and  many  of  the  specific  measures  here  propos- 
ed, may  perhaps  be  safely  adopted,  where  no  others  are 
established.  There  may  also  perhaps  be  cases,  where 
teachers,  whose  schools  are  already  in  successful  oper- 
ation, may  engraft,  upon  their  own  plans,  some  things 
which  are  here  proposed.  If  they  should  attempt  it,  it 
must  be  done  cautiously  and  gradually.  There  is  no  other 
way  by  which  they  can  be  safely  introduced,  or  even  intro- 
duced at  all.  This  is  a  point  of  so  much  importance,  that  I 
must  devote  a  paragraph  to  it,  before  closing  the  chapter. 

Let  a  teacher  propose  to  his  pupils,  formally,  from  his 
desk,  the  plan  of  writing  propositions,  for  example,  and 
procure  his  wrapper,  and  put  it  in  its  place ;  —  and  what 


GENERAL     ARRANGEMENTS.  63 

would  be  the  result  ?  Why,  not  a  single  paper,  probably, 
could  he  get,  from  one  end  of  the  week  to  the  other.  But 
let  him,  on  the  other  hand,  when  a  boy  comes  to  him 
to  ask  some  question,  the  answer  to  which  many  in  the 
school  would  equally  wish  to  hear,  say  to  the  inquirer: 

"  Will  you  be  so  good  as  to  write  that  question,  and  put 
it  on  my  desk,  and  then,  at  the  regular  time,  I  will  answer 
it  to  all  the  school." 

When  he  reads  it,  let  him  state,  that  it  was  written  at 
his  request,  and  give  the  other  boys  permission  to  leave 
their  proposals  or  questions  on  his  desk,  in  the  same  way. 
In  a  few  days,  he  will  have  another,  and  thus  the  plan 
may  be  gently  and  gradually  introduced. 

So  with  officers.  They  should  be  appointed  among  the 
scholars,  only  as  fast  as  they  are  actually  needed,  and 
the  plan  should  thus  be  cautiously  carried  only  so  far  as 
it  proves  good  on  trial.  Be  always  cautious  about  inno- 
vations and  changes.  Make  no  rash  experiments  on  a 
large  scale,  but  always  test  your  principle  in  the  small  way, 
and  then,  if  it  proves  good,  gradually  extend  its  operation, 
as  circumstances  seem  to  require. 

By  thus  cautiously  and  slowly  introducing  plans,  found- 
ed on  the  systematic  principles  here  brought  to  view,  a 
very  considerable  degree  of  quiet,  and  order,  and  regu- 
larity may  be  introduced  into  the  largest  and  most  miscel- 
laneous schools.  And  this  order  and  quiet  are  absolutely 
necessary,  to  enable  the  teacher  to  find  that  interest  and 
enjoyment  in  his  work,  which  were  exhibited  in  the  last 
chapter;  the  pleasure  of  directing  and  controlling  mind, 
and  doing  it,  not  by  useless  and  anxious  complaints,  or 
stern  threats  and  painful  punishments;  but  by  regarding 
the  scene  of  labor  in  its  true  light,  as  a  community  of  in- 
tellectual and  moral  beings,  and  governing  it  by  moral  and 
intellectual  power.  It  is,  in  fact,  the  pleasure  of  exercising 
power.  I  do  not  mean  arbitrary,  personal  authority,  but  the 
power  to  produce,  by  successful  but  quiet  contrivance,  ex- 
tensive and  happy  results; — the  pleasure  of  calmly  consid- 
ering every  difficulty,  and  without  irritation  or  anger,  de- 
vising the  proper  moral  means  to  remedy  the  moral  evil: 
and  then  the  interest  and  pleasure  of  witnessing  its  effects. 


CHAPTER  III. 

INSTRUCTION. 

THERE  are  three  kinds  of  human  knowledge  which 
stand  strikingly  distinct  from  all  the  rest.  They  lie  at  the 
foundation.  They  constitute  the  roots  of  the  tree.  In 
other  words,  they  are  the  means,  by  which  all  other  know- 
ledge is  acquired.  I  need  not  say,  that  I  mean,  Reading, 
Writing,  and  Calculation. 

Teachers  do  not  perhaps  always  consider,  how  entirely 
and  essentially  distinct  these  three  are  from  all  the  rest. 
They  are  arts;  the  acquisition  of  them  is  not  to  be  con- 
sidered as  knowledge,  so  much  as  the  means,  by  which 
knowledge  may  be  obtained.  A  child,  who  is  studying 
Geography,  or  History,  or  Natural  Science,  is  learning 
fads, — gaining  information;  on  the  other  hand,  the  one 
who  is  learning  to  write,  or  to  read,  or  to  calculate,  may 
be  adding  little  or  nothing  to  his  stock  of  knowledge. 
He  is  acquiring  skill,  which,  at  some  future  time,  he  may 
make  the  means  of  increasing  his  knowledge,  to  any 
extent. 

This  distinction  ought  to  be  kept  constantly  in  view, 
and  the  teacher  should  feel  that  these  three  fundamental 
branches  stand  by  themselves,  and  stand  first  in  im- 
portance. I  do  not  mean  to  undervalue  the  others,  but 
only  to  insist  upon  the  superior  value  and  importance  of 
these.  Teaching  a  pupil  to  read,  before  he  enters  upon 
the  active  business  of  life,  is  like  giving  a  new  settler 
an  axe,  as  he  goes  to  seek  his  new  home  in  the  forest. 
Teaching  him  a  lesson  in  history,  is,  on  the  other  hand, 
only  cutting  down  a  tree  or  two  for  him.  A  knowledge 
of  natural  history,  is  like  a  few  bushels  of  grain,  gratui- 
tously placed  in  his  barn ;  but  the  art  of  ready  reckoning, 


INSTRUCTION.  65 

is  the  plough,  which  will  remain  by  him  for  years,  and 
help  him  to  draw  out  from  the  soil  an  annual  treasure. 

The  great  object,  then,  of  the  common  schools  in  our 
country,  is  to  teach  the  whole  population  to  read,  to  write, 
and  to  calculate.  In  fact,  so  essential  is  it,  that  the  accom- 
plishment of  these  objects  should  be  secured,  that  it  is  even 
a  question  whether  common  schools  should  not  be  con- 
fined to  them.  I  say  it  is  a  question,  for  it  is  sometimes 
made  so,  though  public  opinion  has  decided,  that  some  por- 
tion of  attention,  at  least,  should  be  paid  to  the  acquisi- 
tion of  additional  knowledge.  But  after  all,  the  amount 
of  knoivleclge,  which  is  actually  acquired  at  schools,  is 
very  small.  It  must  be  very  small.  The  true  policy  is, 
to  aim  at  making  all,  good  readers,  writers,  and  calcu- 
lators, and  to  consider  the  other  studies  of  the  school 
important,  chiefly  as  practice,  in  turning  these  arts  to 
useful  account.  In  other  words,  the  scholars  should  be 
taught  these  arts,  thoroughly,  first  of  all,  and  in  the  other 
studies,  the  main  design  should  be  to  show  them  how  to 
use,  and  interest  them  in  using,  the  arts  they  have  thus 
acquired. 

A  great  many  teachers  feel  a  much  stronger  interest  in 
the  one  or  two  scholars  they  may  have,  in  Surveying,  or  in 
Latin,  than  they  do  in  the  large  classes,  in  the  elementa- 
ry branches,  which  fill  the  school.  But  a  moment's  re- 
flection will  show,  that  such  a  preference  is  founded  on  a 
very  mistaken  view.  Leading  forward  one  or  two  minds, 
from  step  to  step,  in  an  advanced  study,  is  certainly  far 
inferior,  in  real  dignity  and  importance,  to  opening  all  the 
stores  of  written  knowledge,  to  fifty  or  a  hundred.  The 
man  who  neglects  the  interests  of  his  school,  in  these 
great  branches,  to  devote  his  time  to  two  or  three,  or  half 
a  dozen  older  scholars,  is  unjust  both  to  his  employers  and 
to  himself. 

It  is  the  duty,  therefore,  of  every  teacher,  who  com- 
mences a  common  district  school,  for  a  single  season,  to 
make,  when  he  commences,  an  estimate,  of  the  state  of 
his  pupils,  in  reference  to  these  three  branches.  How 
do  they  all  write?  How  do  they  all  read?  How  do 
they  calculate?  It  would  be  well  if  he  would  make  a 
6* 


66  INSTRUCTION. 

careful  examination  of  the  school,  in  this  respect.  Let 
them  all  write  a  specimen.  Let  all  read,  and  let  him 
make  a  memorandum  of  the  manner,  noticing  how  many 
read  fluently,  how  many  with  difficulty,  how  many  know 
only  their  letters,  and  ^how  many  are  to  be  taught  these. 
Let  him  ascertain  also,  what  progress  they  have  made  in 
Arithmetic, — how  many  can  readily  perform  the  elementa- 
ry processes,  and  what  number  need  instruction  in  these. 
After  thus  surveying  the  ground,  let  him  form  his  plan, 
and  lay  out  his  whole  strength  in  carrying  forward,  as  rap- 
idly as  possible,  the  whole  school,  in  these  studies.  By  this 
means  he  is  acting,  most  directly  and  powerfully,  on  the 
intelligence  of  the  whole  future  community  in  that  place. 
He  is  opening  to  fifty  or  a  hundred  minds,  stores  of  know- 
ledge, which  they  will  go  on  exploring,  for  years  to  come. 
What  a  descent  now  from  such  a  work  as  this,  to  the  mere 
hearing  of  the  recitation  of  half  a  dozen  boys  in  Survey- 
ing! 

I  repeat  it,  that  a  thorough  and  enlightened  survey  of 
the  whole  school  should  be  taken,  and  plans  formed  for 
elevating  the  whole  mass,  in  those  great  branches  of 
knowledge,  which  are  to  be  of  immediate  practical  use  to 
them  in  future  life. 

If  the  school  is  of  higher  order,  the  teacher  should,  in 
the  same  manner,  before  he  forms  his  plans,  consider  well 
what  are  the  great  objects  which  he  has  to  accomplish. 
He  should  ascertain  what  is  the  existing  state  of  his  school, 
both  as  to  knowledge  and  character; — how  long,  generally, 
his  pupils  are  to  remain  under  his  care, — what  are  to  be 
their  future  stations  and  conditions  in  life,  and  what  objects 
he  can  reasonably  hope  to  effect  for  them,  while  they  re- 
main under  his  influence.  By  means  of  this  forethought, 
and  consideration,  he  will  be  enabled  to  work  understand- 
mgly. 

It  is  desirable,  too,  that  what  I  have  recommended,  in 
reference  to  the  whole  school,  should  be  done  with  each 
individual.  Ascertain,  (by  other  means  however  than 
formal  examination,)  to  what  stage  his  education  has  ad- 
Tanced,  and  deliberately  consider  what  objects  you  can 
reasonably  expect  to  effect  for  him,  while  he  remains  un- 


INSTRUCTION.  67 

der  your  care.  You  cannot  indeed  always  form  your 
plans  to  suit,  so  exactly,  your  general  views  in  regard  to 
the  school  and  to  individuals,  as  you  could  wish.  But 
these  general  views  will,  in  a  thousand  cases,  modify  your 
plans,  or  affect  in  a  greater  or  less  degree,  all  your  arrange- 
ments. They  will  keep  you  to  a  steady  purpose,  and  your 
work  will  go  on  far  more  systematically  and  regularly, 
than  it  would,  if,  as  in  fact  many  teachers  do,  you  were  to 
come  headlong  into  your  school,  take  things  just  as  you 
find  them,  and  carry  them  forward  at  random,  without  end 
or  aim. 

This  survey  of  your  field  being  made,  you  are  prepared 
to  commence  definite  operations,  and  the  great  difficulty, 
in  carrying  your  plans  into  effect,  is,  how  to  act  more  effi- 
ciently on  the  greatest  numbers  at  a  time.  The  whole 
business  of  public  instruction,  if  it  goes  on  at  all,  must  go 
on  by  the  teacher's  skill  in  multiplying  his  power,  by  act- 
ing on  numbers  at  once.  In  most  books  on  education,  we 
are  taught,  almost  exclusively,  how  to  operate  on  the 
individual.  It  is  the  error  into  which  theoretic  writers 
almost  always  fall.  We  meet,  in  every  periodical,  and  in 
every  treatise,  and  in  fact,  in  almost  every  conversation 
on  the  subject,  with  remarks,  which  sound  very  well  by 
the  fire-side,  but  they  are  totally  inefficient  and  useless  in 
school,  from  their  being  apparently  based  upon  the  suppo 
sition,  that  the  teacher  has  but  one  pupil  to  attend  to  at  a 
time.  The  great  question  in  the  management  of  schoals, 
is  not,  how  you  can  take  one  scholar,  and  lead  him  for- 
ward, most  rapidly,  in  a  prescribed  course,  but  how  you 
can  classify  and  arrange  numbers,  comprising  every  pos- 
sible variety,  both  as  to  knowledge  and  capacity,  so  as  to 
carry  them  all  forward  effectually  together. 

The  extent  to  which  a  teacher  may  multiply  his  power, 
by  acting  on  numbers  at  a  time,  is  very  great.  In  order 
to  estimate  it,  we  must  consider  carefully  what  it  is,  when 
carried  to  the  greatest  extent,  to  which  it  is  capable  of 
being  carried,  under  the  most  favorable  circumstances. 
Now  it  is  possible  for  a  teacher  to  speak  so  as  to  be  easily 
heard  by  three  hundred  persons,  and  three  hundred  pupils 
can  be  easily  so  seated,  as  to  see  his  illustrations  or  dia- 


68  INSTRUCTION. 

grams.  Now  suppose  that  three  hundred  pupils,  all  ig- 
norant of  the  method  of  reducing  fractions  to  a  common 
denominator,  and  yet  all  old  enough  to  learn,  are  collected 
in  one  room.  Suppose  they  are  all  attentive  and  desirous 
of  learning,  it  is  very  plain  that  the  process  may  be  ex- 
plained to  the  whole  at  once,  so  that  half  an  hour  spent 
in  that  exercise,  would  enable  a  very  large  proportion  of 
them  to  understand  the  subject.  So,  if  a  teacher  is  ex- 
plaining to  a  class  in  Grammar,  the  difference  between 
a  noun  and  verb,  the  explanation  would  do  as  well  for 
several  hundred,  as  for  the  dozen  who  constitute  the  class, 
if  arrangements  could  only  be  made  to  have  the  hundreds 
hear  it.  But  there  are,  perhaps,  only  a  hundred  in  the 
school,  and  of  these  a  large  part  understand  already  the 
point  to  be  explained,  and  another  large  part  are  too  young 
to  attend  to  it.  I  wish  the  object  of  these  remarks  not  to 
be  misunderstood.  I  do  not  recommend  the  attempt  to 
teach  on  so  extensive  a  scale;  I  admit  that  it  is  impracti- 
cable; I  only  mean  to  show  in  what  the  impracticability 
consists,  namely,  in  the  difficulty  of  making  such  arrange- 
ments as  to  derive  the  full  benefit  from  the  instructions 
rendered.  They  are,  in  the  nature  of  things,  available 
to  the  extent  I  have  represented,  but,  in  actual  practice, 
the  full  benefit  cannot  be  derived.  Now,  so  far  as  we 
thus  fall  short  of  this  full  benefit,  so  far  there  is,  of  course, 
waste;  and  it  is  difficult  or  impossible  to  make  such  ar- 
rangements as  will  avoid  the  waste,  in  this  manner,  of  a 
large  portion  of  every  effort,  which  the  teacher  makes. 

A  very  small  class  instructed  by  an  able  teacher,  is 
like  a  factory  of  a  hundred  spindles,  with  a  water-wheel 
of  power  sufficient  for  a  thousand.  In  such  a  case,  even 
if  the  owner,  from  want  of  capital,  or  any  other  cause, 
cannot  add  the  other  nine  hundred,  he  ought  to  know 
how  much  of  his  power  is  in  fact  unemployed,  and  make 
arrangements  to  bring  it  into  useful  exercise,  as  soon  as  he 
can.  The  teacher  in  the  same  manner,  should  understand 
what  is  the  full  beneficial  effect,  which  it  is  possible,  in 
theory,  to  derive  from  his  instructions.  He  should  under- 
stand, too,  that  just  so  far  as  he  falls  short  of  this  full 
effect,  there  is  waste.  It  may  be  Unavoidable ;  part  of  it 


INSTRUCTION.  69 

unquestionably  is,  like  the  friction  of  machinery,  unavoid- 
able. Still,  it  is  waste ;  and  it  ought  to  be  so  understood, 
that  by  the  gradual  perfection  of  the  machinery,  it  may 
be  more  and  more  fully  prevented. 

Always  bear  in  mind  then,  when  you  are  devoting  your 
time  to  two  or  three  individuals  in  a  class,  that  you  are 
losing  a  very  large  part  of  your  labor.  Your  instructions 
are  conducive  to  good  effect,  only  to  the  one  tenth  or  one 
twentieth  of  the  extent,  to  which,  under  more  favorable 
circumstances,  they  might  be  made  available.  And  though 
you  cannot  always  avoid  this  loss,  you  ought  always  to  be 
aware  of  it,  and  so  to  shape  your  measures,  as  to  diminish 
it  as  much  as  possible. 

We  come  now  to  consider  the  particular  measures  to  be 
adopted,  in  giving  instruction. 

The  objects  which  are  to  be  secured,  in  the  manage- 
ment of  classes,  are  twofold, 

1.  Recitation. 

2.  Instruction. 

These  two  objects  are,  it  is  plain,  entirely  distinct. 
Under  the  latter,  is  included  all  the  explanation,  and  assist- 
ance, and  additional  information,  which  the  teacher  may 
give  his  pupils,  and,  under  the  former,  such  an  examina- 
tion of  individuals,  as  is  necessary  to  secure  their  careful 
attention  to  their  lessons.  It  is  unsafe  to  neglect  either  of 
these  points.  If  the  class  meetings  are  mere  recitations, 
they  soon  become  dull  and  mechanical:  the  pupils  gener- 
ally take  little  interest  in  their  studies,  and  imbibe  no  liter- 
ary spirit.  Their  intellectual  progress  will,  accordingly, 
suddenly  cease,  the  moment  they  leave  school,  and  cease  / 
to  be  called  upon  to  recite  lessons.  On  the  other  hand,  if 
instruction  is  all  that  is  aimed  at,  and  recitation,  (by  which  f 
I  mean,  as  above  explained,  such  an  examination  of  indi- 
viduals as  is  necessary  to  ascertain  that  they  have  faithful- 
ly performed  the  tasks  assigned,)  is  neglected,  the  exercise 
soon  becomes  not  much  more  than  a  lecture,  to  which 
those,  and  those  only,  will  attend,  who  please. 

The  business,  therefore,  of  a  thorough  examination  of 


70  INSTRUCTION. 

the  class  must  not  be  omitted.  I  do  not  mean,  that  each 
individual  scholar  must,  every  day,  be  examined ;  but  sim- 
ply that  the  teacher  must,  in  some  way  or  other,  satisfy 
himself,  by  reasonable  evidence,  that  the  whole  class  are 
really  prepared.  A  great  deal  of  ingenuity  may  be  exer- 
cised, in  contriving  means  for  effecting  this  object,  in  the 
shortest  possible  time.  I  know  of  no  part  of  the  field  of  a 
teacher's  labors,  which  may  be  more  facilitated,  by  a  lit- 
tle ingenuity,  than  this. 

One  teacher,  for  instance,  has  a  spelling  lesson  to  hear. 
He  begins  at  the  head  of  the  line,  and  putting  one  word 
to  each  boy,  goes  regularly  down,  each  successive  pupil 
calculating  the  chances  whether  a  word,  which  he  can 
accidentally  spell,  will  or  will  not  come  to  him.  If  he 
spells  it,  the  teacher  cannot  tell  whether  he  is  prepared  or 
not.  That  word  is  only  one  among  fifty,  constituting  the 
lesson.  If  he  misses  it,  the  teacher  cannot  decide  that  he 
was  unprepared.  It  might  have  been  a  single  accidental 
error. 

Another  teacher,  hearing  the  same  lesson,  requests  the 
boys  to  bring  their  slates,  and  as  he  dictates  the  words, 
one  after  another,  requires  all  to  write  them.  After  they 
are  all  written,  he  calls  upon  the  pupils  to  spell  them  aloud 
as  they  have  written  them,  simultaneously,  pausing  a  mo- 
ment after  each,  to  give  those  who  are  wrong,  an  oppor- 
tunity to  indicate  it,  by  some  mark  opposite  the  word  mis- 
pelled.  They  all  count  the  number  of  errors  and  report 
them.  He  passes  down  the  class,  glancing  his  eye  at  the 
work  of  each  one,  to  see  that  all  is  right,  noticing  particu- 
larly those  slates,  which,  from  the  character  of  the  boys, 
need  a  more  careful  inspection.  A  teacher,  who  had  never 
tried  this  experiment,  would  be  surprised  at  the  rapidity 
with  which  such  work  will  be  done  by  a  class,  after  a  little 
practice. 

Now  how  different  are  these  two  methods,  in  their  act- 
ual results!  In  the  latter  case,  the  whole  class  are  thor- 
oughly examined.  In  the  former,  not  a  single  member  of 
it,  is.  Let  me  not  be  understood  to  recommend  exactly 
this  method  of  teaching  spelling,  as  the  best  one  to  be 
adopted,  in  all  cases.  I  only  bring  it  forward  as  an  illus- 


INSTRUCTION.  71 

tration  of  the  idea,  that  a  little  machinery,  a  little  ingenu- 
ity, in  contriving  ways  of  acting  on  the  whole,  rather  than 
on  individuals,  will  very  much  promote  the  teacher's  de- 
signs. 

In  order  to  facilitate  such  plans,  it  is  highly  desirable 
that  the  classes  should  be  trained  to  military  precision  and 
exactness  in  these  manipulations.  What  I  mean  by  this, 
may  perhaps  be  best  illustrated,  by  describing  a  case:  it 
will  show,  in  another  branch,  how  much  will  be  gained 
by  acting  upon  numbers  at  once,  instead  of  upon  each  in- 
dividual in  succession. 

Imagine,  then,  that  a  teacher  requested  all  the  pupils 
of  his  school,  who  could  write,  to  take  out  their  slates, 
at  the  hour  for  a  general  exercise.  As  soon  as  the  first 
bustle  of  opening  and  shutting  the  desks  was  over,  he 
looked  around  the  room,  and  saw  some  ruling  lines  across 
their  slates,  others  wiping  them  all  over  on  both  sides, 
with  sponges,  others  scribbling,  or  writing,  or  making  fig- 
ures.* 

"  All  those,"  says  he,  with  a  pleasant  tone  and  look, 
"  who  have  taken  out  any  thing  besides  slates,  may  rise." 

Several,  in  various  parts  of  the  room,  stood  up. 

"  All  those,  who  have  written  any  thing  since  they  took 
out  their  slates,  may  rise  too,  and  those  who  have  wiped 
their  slates." 

When  all  were  up,  he  said  to  them,  though  not  with 
a  frown  or  a  scowl,  as  if  they  had  committed  some  very 
great  offence; 

"  Suppose  a  company  of  soldiers  should  be  ordered  to 
form  a  line,  and  instead  of  simply  obeying  that  order,  they 
should  all  set  at  work,  each  in  his  own  way,  doing  some- 
thing else.  One  man,  at  one  end  of  the  line,  begins  to 
load  and  fire  his  gun ;  another  takes  out  his  knapsack,  and 
begins  to  eat  his  luncheon;  a  third  amuses  himself  by  go- 
ing as  fast  as  possible  through  the  exercise;  and  another 
still,  begins  to  march  about,  hither  and  thither,  facing  to 
the  right  and  left,  and  performing  all  the  evolutions  he  can 
think  of.  What  should  you  say  to  such  a  company  as 
that?" 

The  boys  laughed. 


72  INSTRUCTION. 

"  It  is  better,"  said  the  teacher,  "  when  numbers  are 
acting  under  the  direction  of  one,  that  they  should  all  act 
exactly  together.  In  this  way,  we  advance  much  faster, 
than  we  otherwise  should.  Be  careful  therefore  to  do  ex- 
actly what  I  command,  and  nothing  more." 

"  Provide  a  place,  on  your  slates,  large  enough  to  write 
a  single  line,"  added  the  teacher,  in  a  distinct  voice.  I 
print  his  orders  in  italics,  and  his  remarks  and  explana- 
tions in  Roman  letter. 

"  Prepare  to  write." 

"  I  mean  by  this,"  he  continued,  "  that  you  place  your 
slates  before  you,  with  your  pencils  at  the  place  where  you 
are  to  begin,  so  that  all  may  commence  precisely  at  the 
same  instant. 

The  teacher  who  tries  such  an  experiment  as  this,  will 
find,  at  such  a  juncture,  an  expression  of  fixed  and  pleas- 
ed attention  upon  every  countenance  in  school.  All  will 
be  intent;  all  will  be  interested.  Boys  love  order  and 
system,  and  acting  in  concert;  and  they  will  obey,*vvith 
great  alacrity,  such  commands  as  these,  if  they  are  good- 
humoredly,  though  decidedly  expressed. 

The  teacher  observed  in  one  part  of  the  room,  a  hand 
raised,  indicating  that  the  boy  wished  to  speak  to  him. 
He  gave  him  liberty  by  pronouncing  his  name. 

"  I  have  no  pencil;"   said  the  boy. 

A  dozen  hands,  all  around  him,  were  immediately  seen 
fumbling  in  pockets  and  desks,  and,  in  a  few  minutes,  sev- 
eral pencils  were  reached  out  for  his  acceptance. 

The  boy  looked  at  the  pencils,  and  then  at  the  teacher; 
he  did  not  exactly  know,  whether  he  was  to  take  one  or 
not. 

"  All  those  boys,"  said  the  teacher,  pleasantly,  "who 
have  taken  out  pencils,  may  rise." 

"Have  these  boys  done  right,  or  wrong?" 

"Right;"  "  Wrong;"  "Right;"  answered  their  com- 
panions, variously. 

"  Theij  motive  was  to  help  their  classmate  out  of  his 
difficulties;  that  is  a  good  feeling,  certainly." 

"Yes  sir;   right;"  "Right." 

11  But  I  thought  you  promised  me  a  moment  ago,"  re- 


INSTRUCTION.  73 

plied  the  teacher,  "  not  to  do  any  thing,  unless  I  com- 
manded it.  Did  I  ask  for  pencils?" 

A  pause. 

"  I  do  not  blame  these  boys  at  all,  in  this  case,  still  it 
is  better  to  adhere  rigidly  to  the  principle,  of  exact  obedi- 
ence, when  numbers  are  acting  together.  I  thank  them, 
therefore,  for  being  so  ready  to  assist  a  companion,  but 
they  must  put  their  pencils  away,  as  they  were  taken  out 
without  orders." 

Now  such  a  dialogue  as  this,  if  the  teacher  speaks  in  a 
good-humored,  though  decided  manner,  would  be  univer- 
sally well  received,  in  any  school.  Whenever  strictness 
of  discipline  is  unpopular,  it  is  rendered  so,  simply  by  the 
ill-humored  and  ill-judged  means,  by  which  it  is  attempt-r 
ed  to  be  introduced.  But  all  children  will  love  strict  dis- 
cipline, if  it  is  pleasantly,  though  firmly  maintained.  It 
is  a  great,  though  very  prevalent  mistake,  to  imagine, 
that  boys  and  girls  like  a  lax  and  inefficient  government, 
and  dislike  the  pressure  of  steady  control.  \What  they 
dislike  is,  sour  looks  and  irritating  language,  and  they 
therefore  very  naturally  dislike  every  thing  introduced  or 
sustained  by  their  means.)  If,  however,  exactness  and 
precision  in  all  the  operations  of  a  class  and  of  the  school, 
are  introduced  and  enforced,  in  the  proper  manner,  i.  e., 
by  a  firm,  but  mild  and  good-humored  authority,  scholars 
will  universally  be  pleased  with  them.  They  like  to  see 
the  uniform  appearance, — the  straight  line, — the  simulta- 
neous movement.  They  like  to  feel  the  operation  of  sys- 
tem, and  to  realize,  while  they  are  at  the  school  room,  that 
they  form  a  community,  governed  by  fixed  and  steady 
laws,  firmly  but  pleasantly  administered.  On  the  other 
hand,  laxity  of  discipline,  and  the  disorder  which  will 
result  from  it,  will  only  lead  the  pupils  to  contemn  their 
teacher,  and  to  hate  their  school. 

By  introducing  and  maintaining  such  a  discipline  as  I 
have  described,  great  facilities  will  be  secured  for  exam- 
ining the  classes.  For  example,  to  take  a  case  differ- 
ent from  the  one  before  described;  let  us  suppose  that  a 
class  have  been  performing  a  number  of  examples  in  Ad- 
dition. They  come  together  to  the  recitation,  and  under 

7 


74  INSTRUCTION. 

one  mode  of  managing  classes,  the  teacher  is  immediate- 
ly beset,  by  a  number  of  the  pupils,  with  excuses.  One 
had  no  slate;  another  was  absent  when  the  lesson  was  as- 
signed; a  third  performed  the  work,  but  it  got  rubbed  out; 
arid  a  fourth  did  not  know  what  was  to  be  done.  The 
teacher  stops  to  hear  all  these,  and  to  talk  about  them; 
fretted  himself,  and  fretting  the  delinquents  by  his  impa- 
tient remarks.  The  rest  of  the  class  are  waiting,  and 
having  nothing  good  to  do,  the  temptation  is  almost  irre- 
sistible to  do  something  bad.  One  boy  is  drawing  pic- 
tures on  his  slate,  to  make  his  neighbors  laugh;  another 
is  whispering,  and  two  more  are  at  play.  The  disorder 
continues,  while  the  teacher  goes  round  examining  slate 
after  slate,  his  whole  attention  being  engrossed  by  each 
individual,  as  the  pupils  come  to  him  successively,  while 
the  rest  are  left  to  themselves,  interrupted  only  by  an  oc- 
casional harsh  or  even  angry,  but  utterly  useless  rebuke 
from  him. 

But  under  another  mode  of  managing  classes  and  schools, 
a  very  different  result  would  be  produced. 

A  boy  approaches  the  teacher  to  render  an  excuse, 
the  teacher  replies,  addressing  himself,  however,  to  the 
whole  class,  "  I  shall  give  all  an  opportunity  to  offer 
their  excuses  presently.  No  one  must  come  till  he  is 
called." 

The  class  then  regularly  take  their  places  in  the  recit- 
ation seats;  the  prepared  and  unprepared  together.  The 
following  commands  are  given  *and  obeyed,  promptly. 
They  are  spoken  pleasantly,  but  still  in  the  tone  of  com- 
mand. 

"  The  class  may  rise." 

"  All  those,  that  are  not  fully  prepared  with  this  lesson, 
may  sit." 

A  number  sit,  and  others,  doubtful  whether  they  are 
prepared  or  not,  or  thinking  that  there  is  something  pecu- 
liar in  their  cases,  which  they  wish  to  state,  raise  their 
hands,  or  make  any  other  signal  which  is  customary  to 
indicate  a  wish  to  speak.  Such  a  signal  ought  always 
to  be  agreed  upon,  and  understood  in  school. 

The  teacher  shakes  his  head;  saying  "  I  will  hear  you 


INSTRUCTION.  75 

presently.  If  there  is,  on  any  account  whatever,  any 
doubt  whether  you  are  prepared,  you  must  sit." 

"  Those  that  are  standing  may  read  their  answers,  to 
No.  1.  Unit  figure?" 

Boys.     "Five." 

Teacher.     "Tens?" 

B.     "Six." 

T.     "  Hundreds?" 

B.     "  Seven." 

While  these  numbers  are  thus  reading,  the  teacher 
looks  at  the  boys,  and  can  easily  see  whether  any  are  not 
reading  their  own  answers,  but  only  following  the  rest. 
If  fchey  have  been  trained  to  speak  exactly  together,  his 
ear  will  also  at  once  detect  any  erroneous  answer,  which 
any  one  may  give.  He  takes  down  the  figures  given  by 
the  majority,  on  his  own  slate,  and  reads  them  aloud. 

"  This  is  the  answer  obtained  by  the  majority:  it  is, 
undoubtedly  right.  Those,  who  have  different  answers 
may  sit." 

These  directions,  if  understood  and  obeyed,  would  di- 
vide the  class  evidently  into  two  portions.  Those  stand- 
ing, have  their  work  done,  and  done  correctly,  and  those 
sitting,  have  some  excuse  or  error  to  be  examined.  A 
new  lesson  may  now  be  assigned,  and  the  first  portion 
may  be  dismissed;  which,  in  a  well  regulated  school,  will 
be  two  thirds  of  the  class.  Their  slates  may  be  slightly 
examined,  as  they  pass  by  the  teacher,  on  their  way  to 
their  seats,  to  see  that  all  is  fair;  but  it  will  be  safe  to 
take  it  for  granted,  that  a  result,  in  which  a  majority 
agree,  will  be  right.  Truth  is  consistent  with  itself,  but 
error,  in  such  a  case,  never  is.  This,  the  teacher  can, 
at  any  time,  show,  by  comparing  the  answers  that  are 
wrong;  they  will  always  be  found,  not  only  to  differ  from 
the  correct  result,  but  to  contradict  each  other. 

The  teacher  may  now,  if  he  pleases,  after  the  majority 
of  the  class  have  gone,  hear  the  reasons  of  those  who 
were  unprepared,  and  look  for  the  errors  of  those  whose 
work  was  incorrect:  but  it  is  better  to  spend  as  little  time 
as  possible,  in  such  a  way.  If  a  scholar  is  not  prepared, 
it  is  not  of  much  consequence,  whether  it  is  because  he 


76  INSTRUCTION. 

forgot  his  book,  or  mistook  the  lesson;  or  if  it  is  ascertain- 
ed that  his  answer  is  incorrect,  it  is,  ordinarily,  a  mere 
waste  of  time,  to  search  for  the  particular  error. 

"  I  have  looked  over  my  work,  sir,"  says  the  boy,  per- 
haps, "  and  I  cannot  find  where  it  is  wrong."  He  means 
by  it,  that  he  does  not  believe  that  it  is  wrong. 

"  It  is  no  matter  if  you  cannot,"  would  be  the  proper 
reply,  "  since  it  certainly  is  wrong;  you  have  made  a 
mistake  in  adding,  somewhere,  but  it  is  not  worth  while 
for  me  to  spend  two  or  three  minutes  apiece  with  all  of 
you,  to  ascertain  where.  Try  to  be  careful  next  time." 

The  cases  of  those  who  are  unprepared  at  a  recitation, 
ought,  by  no  means,  to  be  passed  by,  unnoticed,  although 
it  would  be  unwise  to  spend  much  time  in  examining 
each,  in  detail, 

"It  is  not  of  much  consequence,"  the  teacher  might 
say,  "  whether  you  have  good  excuses,  or  bad,  so  long  as 
you  are  not  prepared.  In  future  life,  you  will  certainly 
be  unsuccessful,  if  you  fail,  no  matter  for  what  reason, 
to  discharge  the  duties  which  devolve  upon  you.  A  car- 
penter, for  instance,  would  certainly  lose  his  work,  if  he 
should  not  perform  it  faithfully,  and  in  season.  Excuses, 
no  matter  how  reasonable,  will  do  him  little  good.  So  in 
this  school.  I  want  good  recitations,  not  good  excuses. 
I  hope  every  one  will  be  prepared  to-morrow." 

It  is  not  probable,  however,  that  every  one  would  be 
prepared  the  next  day,  in  such  a  case;  but,  by  acting 
steadily  on  these  principles,  the  number  of  delinquencies 
would  be  so  much  diminished,  that  the  very  few  which 
should  be  left,  could  easily  be  examined  in  detail,  and  the 
remedies  applied. 

Simultaneous  recitation,  by  which  I  mean  the  practice 
of  addressing  a  question  to  all  the  class,  to  be  answered 
by  all  together,  is  a  practice,  which  has  been  for  some 
years  rapidly  extending  in  our  schools,  and,  if  adopted 
with  proper  limits  and  restrictions,  is  attended  with  great 
advantage.  The  teacher  must  guard  against  some  dan- 
gers, however,  which  will  be  likely  to  attend  it. 

1.  Some  will  answer  very  eagerly,  instantly  after  the 
question  is  completed.  They  wish  to  show  their  superior 


INSTRUCTION.  77 

readiness.  Let  the  teacher  mention  this,  expose,  kindly, 
the  motive  which  leads  to  it,  and  tell  them  it  is  as  irregu- 
lar to  answer  before  the  rest,  as  after  them. 

2.  Some  will  defer  their  answers,  until  they  can  catch 
those  of  their  comrades,  for  a  guide.     Let  the  teacher 
mention  this  fault,  expose  the  motive  which  leads  to  it, 
and  tell  them  that,  if  they  do  not  answer  independently, 
and  at  once,  they  had  better  not  answer  at  all. 

3.  Some  will  not  answer  at  all.      The  teacher  can  tell 
by  looking  around  the  class  who  do  not,  for  they  cannot 
counterfeit  the  proper  motion  of  the  lips,  with  promptness 
and    decision,   unless   they  know  what  the  answer  is  to 
be.     He  ought  occasionally  to  say  to  such  an  one,  "  I 
perceive  you  do  not  answer ;"  and  ask  him  questions  indi- 
vidually. 

4.  In  some  cases,  there  is  danger  of  confusion  in  the 
answers,  from  the  fact  that  the  question  may  be  of  such 
a  nature,  that  the  answer  is  long,  and  may,  by  different 
individuals,  be  differently  expressed.     This   evil  must  be 
guarded  against,  by  so  shaping  the  question,  as  to  admit 
of  a  reply  in  a  single  word.     In  reading  large  numbers, 
for  example,  each  figure  may  be  called  for  by  itself,  or  they 
may  be  given  one  after  another,  the  pupils  keeping  exact 
time.     When  it  is  desirable  to  ask  a  question  to  which 
the    answer   is  necessarily  long,  it  may  be  addressed  to 
an  individual,  or  the  whole  class  may  write  their  replies, 
which  may  then  be  read  in  succession. 

In  a  great  many  cases  where  simultaneous  answering 
is  practised,  after  a  short  time,  the  evils  above  specified 
are  allowed  to  grow,  until  at  last  some  half  dozen  bright 
members  of  a  class  answer  for  all,  the  rest  dragging  after 
them,  echoing  their  replies,  or  ceasing  to  take  any  inter- 
est in  an  exercise,  which  brings  no  personal  and  indi- 
vidual responsibility  upon  them.  To  prevent  this  the 
teacher  should  exercise  double  vigilance,  at  such  a  time. 
He  should  often  address  questions  to  individuals  alone, 
especially  to  those  most  likely  to  be  inattentive  and  care- 
less, and  guard  against  the  ingress  of  every  abuse,  which 
might,  without  close  vigilance,  appear. 

With  these  cautions,  the  method  here  alluded  to  will 
7* 


78  INSTRUCTION. 

be  found  to  be  of  very  great  advantage  in  many  studies; 
for  example,  all  the  arithmetical  tables  may  be  recited  in 
this  way;  words  may  be  spelled,  answers  to  sums  given; 
columns  of  figures  added,  or  numbers  multiplied;  and 
many  questions  in  History,  Geography,  and  other  miscel- 
laneous studies,  answered,  especially  the  general  ques-. 
tions  asked  for  the  purpose  of  a  review. 

But  besides  being  useful  as  a  mode  of  examination,  this 
plan  of  answering  questions  simultaneously,  is  a  very  im-i 
portant  means  of  fixing  in  the  mind,  any  facts,  which  the 
teacher  may  communicate  to  his  pupils.  If,  for  instance, 
he  says  some  day  to  a  class,  that  Vasco  de  Gama  was  the 
discoverer  of  the  passage  round  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope, 
and  leaves  it  here,  in  a  few  days,  not  one  in  twenty,  will 
recollect  the  name.  But  let  him  call  upon  them  all  to 
spell  it,  simultaneously,  and  then  to  pronounce  it  distinct- 
ly, three  or  four  times  in  concert,  and  the  word  will 
be  very  strongly  impressed  upon  the  mind.  The  reflect- 
ing teacher  will  find  a  thousand  cases,  in  the  instruc^ 
tion  of  his  classes,  and  in  his  general  exercises,  in  the 
school,  in  which  this  principle  will  be  of  great  utility.  It 
is  universal  in  its  application.  What  we  say,  we  fix  by 
the  very  act  of  saying  it,  in  the  mind.  Hence  reading 
aloud,  though  a  slower,  is  a  far  more  thorough  method, 
than  reading  silently;  and  it  is  better,  in  almost  all  cases, 
whether  in  the  family,  or  in  sabbath,  or  common  schools, 
when  general  instructions  are  given,  to  have  the  leading 
points  fixed  in  the  mind,  by  questions,  answered  simul- 
taneously. 

But  we  are  wandering  a  little  from  our  subject;  which 
is,  in  this  part  of  our  chapter,  the  methods  of  examining  a 
class,  not  of  giving  or  fixing  instructions. 

Another  mode  of  examining  classes,  which  it  is  import- 
ant to  describe,  consists  in  requiring  written  answers  to 
the  questions  asked.  The  form  and  manner,  in  which 
this  plan  may  be  adopted,  is  various.  The  class  may 
bring  their  slates  to  the  recitation,  and  the  teacher  may 
propose  questions  successively,  the  answers  to  which  all 
the  class  may  write,  numbering  them  carefully.  After  a 
dozen  answers  are  written,  the  teacher  may  call,  at  ran- 


INSTRUCTION.  79 

dom,  for  them;  or  he  may  repeat  a  question,  and  ask 
each  pupil  to  read  the  answer  he  had  written;  or  he  may 
examine  the  slates.  Perhaps  this  method  may  be  very 
successfully  employed  in  reviews,  by  dictating  to  the 
class,  a  list  of  questions,  relating  to  the  ground  they  have 
gone  over,  for  a  week,  and  to  which  they  are  to  prepare 
answers,  written  out  at  length,  and  to  be  brought  in  at 
the  next  exercise.  This  method  may  be  made  more  for- 
mal still,  by  requiring  a  class  to  write  a  full  and  regular 
abstract  of  all  they  have  learned,  during  a  specified  time. 
The  practice  of  thus  reducing  to  writing  what  has  been 
learned,  will  be  attended  with  many  advantages,  so  obvi- 
ous that  they  need  not  be  described. 

It  will  be  perceived  that  three  methods  of  examining 
classes  have  now  been  named,  and  these  will  afford  the 
teacher  the  means  of  introducing  a  very  great  variety,  in 
his  mode  of  conducting  his  recitations,  while  he  still  car- 
ries his  class  forward  steadily  in  their  prescribed  course. 
Each  is  attended  with  its  peculiar  advantages.  The  single 
replies,  coming  from  individuals  specially  addressed,  are 
more  rigid,  and  more  to  be  relied  upon; — but  they  con- 
sume a  great  deal  of  time,  and  while  one  is  questioned,  it 
requires  much  skill,  to  keep  up  interest  in  the  rest.  The 
simultaneous  answers  of  a  class  awaken  more  general  in- 
terest, but  it  is  difficult,  without  special  care,  to  secure, 
by  this  means,  a  thorough  examination  of  all.  The 
written  replies,  are  more  thorough,  but  they  require  more 
time,  and  attention,  and  while  they  habituate  the  pupil 
to  express  his  thoughts  in  writing,  they  would,  if  ex- 
clusively adopted,  fail  to  accustom  him  to  an  equally  im- 
portant practice,  that  of  the  oral  communication  of  his 
thoughts.  A  constant  variety,  of  which  these  three  me- 
thods should  be  the  elements,  is  unquestionably  the  best 
mode.  We  not  only,  by  this  means,  secure  in  a  great 
degree  the  advantages  which  each  is  fitted  to  produce, 
but  we  gain,  also,  the  additional  advantage  and  interest 
of  variety. 

By  these,  and  perhaps  by  other  means,  it  is  the  duty  of 
the  teacher  to  satisfy  himself  that  his  pupils  are  really  at- 
tentive to  their  duties.  It  is  not  perhaps  necessary,  that 


80  INSTRUCTION. 

every  individual  should  be,  everyday,  minutely  examined ; 
this  is,  in  many  cases,  impossible.  But  the  system  of 
examination  should  be  so  framed,  and  so  administered,  as 
to  be  daily  felt  by  all,  and  to  bring  upon  every  one,  a  daily 
responsibility. 

We  come  now  to  consider  the  second  general  head, 
which  was  to  be  discussed  in  this  chapter. 

The  study  of  books  alone,  is  insufficient  to  give  know- 
ledge to  the  young.  In  the  first  stage,  learning  to  read,  a 
book  is  of  no  use  whatever,  without  the  voice  of  the  liv- 
ing teacher.  The  child  cannot  take  a  step  alone.  As  the 
pupil,  however,  advances  in  his  course,  his  dependence  up- 
on his  teacher  for  guidance* and  help,  continually  dimin- 
ishes, until,  at  last,  the  scholar  sits  in  his  solitary  study, 
with  no  companion  but  his  books,  and  desiring,  for  a 
solution  of  every  difficulty,  nothing  but  a  larger  library. 
In  schools,  however,  the  pupils  have  made  so  little  pro- 
gress in  this  course,  that  they  all  need  more  or  less  of  this 
oral  assistance.  Difficulties  must  be  explained;  questions 
must  be  answered;  the  path  must  be  smoothed,  and  the 
way  pointed  out,  by  a  guide,  who  has  travelled  it  before, 
or  it  will  be  impossible  for  the  pupil  to  go  on.  This  is  the 
part  of  our  subject,  which  we  now  approach. 

The  great  principle  which  is  to  guide  the  teacher,  in 
this  part  of  his  duty,  is  this;  Assist  your  pupils,  in  such 
a  way,  as  to  had  them,  as  soon  as  possible,  to  do  without 
assistance.  This  is  fundamental.  In  a  short  time  they 
will  be  away  from  your  reach;  they  will  have  no  teacher 
to  consult;  and  unless  you  teach  them  how  to  understand 
books  themselves,  they  must  necessarily  stop  suddenly  in 
their  course,  the  moment  you  cease  to  help  them  forward. 
I  shall  proceed,  therefore,  to  consider  the  subject,  in  the 
following  plan: — 

1.  Means  of  exciting  interest  in  study. 

2.  The  kind  and  degree  of  assistance  to  be  rendered. 

3.  Miscellaneous  suggestions. 

1.  Interesting  the  pupils  in  their  studies.  There  are 
various  principles  of  human  nature,  which  may  be  of 
great  avail,  in  accomplishing  this  object.  Making  Intel- 


INSTRUCTION.  81 

lectual  effort,  and  acquiring  knowledge,  are  always  pleas- 
ant to  the  human  mind,  unless  some  peculiar  circumstan- 
ces render  them  otherwise.  The  teacher  has,  therefore, 
only  to  remove  obstructions,  and  sources  of  pain,  and  the 
employment  of  his  pupils  will  be,  of  itself,  a  pleasure. 

"  I  am  going  to  give  you  a  new  exercise  to-day,"  said 
a  teacher  to  a  class  of  boys,  in  Latin.  "  I  am  going  to 
have  you  parse  your  whole  lesson,  in  writing.  It  will  be 
difficult,  but  I  think  you  maybe  able  to  accomplish  it." 

The  class  looked  surprised.  They  did  not  know  what 
parsing  in  writing  could  be. 

"  You  may  first,  when  you  take  your  seats,  and  are 
ready  to  prepare  the  lesson,  write  upon  your  slates,  a  list 
of  the  ten  first  nouns,  arranging  them  in  a  column.  Do 
you  understand  so  far?  " 

"Yes  sir." 

"  Then  rule  lines  for  another  column,  just  beyond  this. 
In  parsing  nouns,  what  is  the  first  particular  to  be  named?  " 

"  What  the  noun  is  from." 

11  Yes;  that  is,  its  nominative.  Now  you  may  write, 
at  the  head  of  the  first  column,  the  word  JVbtws,  and  at 
the  head  of  the  second,  JVbm.,  for  nominative.  Then  rule 
a  line  for  the  third  column.  What  shall  this  contain?" 
"  The  declension."  "  Yes;  and  the  fourth?  "  "  Gen- 
der." "  The  fifth?  "  "  Number." 

In  the  same  manner  the  other  columns  were  designat- 
ed; the  sixth,  was  to  contain  case;  the  seventh,  the  word, 
with  which  the  noun  was  connected,  in  construction ;  and 
the  eighth,  a  reference  to  the  rule. 

"  Now  I  wish  you,"  continued  the  teacher,  "  to  fill  up 
such  a  table  as  this,  with  ten  nouns.  Do  you  understand 
how  I  mean?  " 

"  Yes  sir;  "  "  No  sir;  "  they  answered,  variously. 

"All  who  do  understand  may  take  their  seats;  as  I 
wish  to  give  as  little  explanation,  as  possible.  The  more 
you  can  depend  upon  yourselves,  the  better." 

Those  who  saw  clearly  what  was  to  be  done,  left  the 
class,  and  the  teacher  continued  his  explanation  to  those 
who  were  left  behind.  He  made  the  plan  perfectly  clear 
to  them,  by  taking  a  particular  noun,  and  running  it 


82  INSTRUCTION 

through  the  table,  showing  what  should  be  written  opposite 
to  the  word,  in  all  the  columns;  and  then  dismissed  them. 

The  class  separated,  as  every  class  would,  in  such  a 
case,  with  strong  interest  in  the  work  before  them.  It  was 
not  so  difficult  as  to  perplex  them,  and  yet  it  required  at- 
tention and  care.  They  were  interested  and  pleased; — 
pleased  with  the  effort  which  it  required  them  to  make, 
and  they  anticipated,  with  interest  and  pleasure,  the  time 
of  coming  again  to  the  class,  to  report  and  compare  their 
work. 

When  the  time  for  the  class  came,  the  teacher  addressed 
them  somewhat  as  follows: 

"  Before  looking  at  your  slates,  I  am  going  to  predict 
what  the  faults  are.  I  have  not  seen  any  of  your  work, 
but  shall  judge  altogether  from  my  general  knowledge  of 
school-boys,  and  the  difficulties  I  know  they  meet  with 
.Do  you  think  I  shall  succeed? " 

The  scholars  made  no  reply,  and  an  unskilful  teacher 
would  imagine,  that  time  spent  in  such  remarks,  would  be 
wholly  wasted.  By  no  means.  The  influence  of  it  was  to 
awaken  universal  interest  in  the  approaching  examination 
of  the  slates.  Every  scholar  would  be  intent,  watching, 
with  eager  interest,  to  see  whether  the  imagined  faults 
would  be  found  upon  his  work.  The  class  was,  by  that 
single  pleasant  remark,  put  into  the  best  possible  state, 
for  receiving  the  criticisms  of  the  teacher. 

"  The  first  fault,  which  I  suppose  will  be  found,  is,  that 
some  are  unfinished." 

The  scholars  looked  surprised.  They  did  not  expect  to 
have  that  called  a  fault. 

"  How  many  plead  guilty  to  it?  " 

A  few  raised  their  hands,  and  the  teacher  continued. 

"  I  suppose  that  some  will  be  found  partly  effaced.  The 
slates  were  not  laid  away  carefully,  or  they  were  not  clean, 
so  that  the  writing  is  not  distinct.  How  many  find  this 
the  case  with  their  work?  " 

"  I  suppose  that,  in  some  cases,  the  lines  will  not  be 
perpendicular,  but  will  slant,  probably  towards  the  left,  like 
writing." 

"  I  suppose  also,  that,  in  -some  cases,  the  writing  will 


INSTRUCTION.  83 

be  careless,  so  that  I  cannot  easily  read  it.  How  many 
plead  guilty  to  this?  " 

After  mentioning  such  other  faults  as  occurred  to  him, 
relating  chiefly  to  the  form  of  the  table,  and  the  mere  me- 
chanical execution  of  the  work,  he  said: 

"  I  think  I  shall  not  look  at  your  slates  to-day.  You 
can  all  see,  I  have  no  doubt,  how  you  can  considerably 
improve  them,  in  mechanical  execution,  in  your  next  les- 
son; and  I  suppose  you  would  a  little  prefer  that  I  should 
not  see  your  first  imperfect  efforts.  In  fact,  I  should  rather 
not  see  them.  At  the  next  recitation,  they  probably  will 
be  much  better." 

One  important  means  by  which  the  teacher  may  make 
his  scholars  careful  of  their  reputation,  is  to  show  them, 
thus,  that  he  is  careful  of  it  himself. 

Now,  in  such  a  case  as  this,  for  it  is,  except  in  the 
principles  which  it  is  intended  to  illustrate,  imaginary,  a 
very  strong  interest  would  be  awakened  in  the  class,  in 
the  work  assigned  them.  Intellectual  effort,  in  new  and 
constantly  varied  modes,  is  in  itself  a  pleasure,  and  this 
pleasure  the  teacher  may  deepen  and  increase  very  easily, 
by  a  little  dexterous  management,  designed  to  awaken 
curiosity,  and  concentrate  attention.  It  ought,  however, 
to  be  constantly  borne  in  mind,  that  this  variety  should 
be  confined,  to  the  modes  of  pursuing  an  object,  which 
is  permanent,  and  constant,  and  steadily  pursued.  For 
instance,  if  a  little  class  are  to  be  taught  simple  addition, 
after  the  process  is  once  explained,  which  may  be  done, 
perhaps,  in  two  or  three  lessons,  they  will  need  many  days 
of  patient  practice,  to  render  it  familiar,  to  impress  it  firmly 
in  their  recollection,  and  to  enable  them  to  work  with  rapid- 
ity. Now  this  object  must  be  steadily  pursued.  It  would 
be  very  unwise  for  the  teacher  to  say  to  himself;  my  class 
are  tired  of  addition,  I  must  carry  them  on  to  subtraction, 
or  give  them  some  other  study.  It  would  be  equally  un- 
wise, to  keep  them  many  days  performing  example  after 
example,  in  monotonous  succession,  each  lesson  a  mere 
repetition  of  the  last.  He  must  steadily  pursue  his 
object,  of  familiarizing  them  fully  with  this  elementary 
process,  but  he  may  give  variety  and  spirit  to  the  work, 


84  INSTRUCTION. 

by  changing  occasionally  the  modes.  One  week  he  may 
dictate  examples  to  them,  and  let  them  come  together  to 
compare  their  results;  one  of  the  class  being  appointed 
to  keep  a  list  of  all  who  are  correct,  each  day.  At  an- 
other time,  each  one  may  write  an  example,  which  he  may 
read  aloud  to  all  the  others,  to  be  performed  and  brought 
in  at  the  next  time.  Again,  he  may  let  them  work  on 
paper,  with  pen  and  ink,  that  he  may  see  how  few  mis- 
takes they  make,  as  mistakes  in  ink,  cannot  be  easily  re- 
moved. He  may  excite  interest  by  devising  ingenious 
examples,  such  as  finding  out  how  much  all  the  numbers 
from  one  to  fifty  will  make,  when  added  together,  or  the 
amount  of  the  ages  of  the  whole  class;  or  any  such  ex- 
ample, the  result  of  which  they  might  feel  a  little  interest 
in  learning.  Thus  the  object  is  steadily  pursued,  though 
the  means  of  pursuing  it,  are  constantly  changing.  We 
have  the  advantage  of  regular  progress  in  the  acquisition 
of  knowledge  truly  valuable,  while  this  progress  is  made, 
with  all  the  spirit  and  interest  which  variety  can  give. 

The  necessity  of  making  such  efforts  as  this,  however, 
to  keep  up  the  interest  of  the  class  in  their  work,  and  to 
make  it  pleasant  to  them,  will  depend  altogether  upon 
circumstances;  or  rather,  it  will  vary  much  with  circum- 
stances. A  class  of  pupils  somewhat  advanced  in  their 
studies,  and  understanding  and  feeling  the  value  of  know- 
ledge, will  need  very  little  of  such  effort  as  this;  while 
young  and  giddy  children,  who  have  been  accustomed  to 
dislike  books  and  school,  and  every  thing  connected  with 
them,  will  need  more.  It  ought,  however,  in  all  cases,  to 
be  made  a  means,  not  an  end; — the  means  to  lead  on  a 
pupil  to  an  interest  in  progress  in  knowledge  itself,  which 
is,  after  all,  the  great  motive,  which  ought  to  be  brought, 
as  soon  and  as  extensively  as  possible,  to  operate  in  the 
school-room. 

Another  way  to  awaken  interest  in  the  studies  of  the 
school,  is  to  bring  out  as  frequently,  and  as  distinctly,  as 
possible,  the  connexion  between  these  studies  and  the 
practical  business  of  life.  The  events  which  are  occur- 
ring around  you,  and  which  interest  the  community  in  which 
you  are  placed,  may,  by  a  little  ingenuity,  be  connected, 


OF  THE 
INSTRUCTION.          l(U  N  ]  85 


in  a  thousand  ways,  with  the  studies  of  the  school.  "If  the 
practice,  which  has  been  already  repeatedly  recommended, 
of  appropriating  a  quarter  of  an  hour,  each  day,  to  a 
general  exercise,  should  be  adopted,  it  will  afford  great 
facilities  for  doing  this. 

Suppose,  for  example,  while  the  question  between  the 
General  Government  and  the  State  of  South  Carolina,  was 
pending,  and  agitating  the  whole  country,  almost  every  one 
looking,  with  anxious  interest,  every  day,  for  intelligence 
from  the  scene  of  the  conflict,  that  the  teacher  of  a  school, 
had  brought  up  the  subject,  at  such  a  general  exercise 
as  has  been  mentioned.  He  describes,  in  a  few  words, 
the  nature  of  the  question,  and,  in  such  a  manner,  as  to 
awaken,  throughout  the  school,  a  strong  interest  in  the  re- 
sult of  the  contest.  He  then  says, 

"  I  wish  now  to  make  you  all  more  fully  acquainted 
with  this  case,  and  the  best  way  of  doing  it,  which  oc- 
curs to  me,  is  as  follows: 

"  There  are  several  studies  in  school,  which  throw  light 
upon  this  controversy;  especially  History,  Geography,  and 
Political  Economy.  Now,  I  shall  take  the  classes  in  these 
studies,  for  a  day  or  two,  out  of  their  regular  course,  and 
assign  them  lessons  which  relate  to  this  subject,  and  then 
hear  them  recite  in  the  General  Exercise,  that  you  may 
all  hear.  The  first  class  in  Geography  may  take  there- 
fore, for  their  next  lesson,  the  State  of  South  Carolina; 
to-morrow  they  will  recite  in  the  hearing  of  the  whole 
school,  when  I  shall  make  such  additional  explanations, 
as  will  occur  to  me.  The  next  day,  I  shall  assign  to  the 
class  in  History,  a  passage  giving  an  account  of  the  for- 
mation of  this  government;  and  afterwards  lessons  will 
be  recited  from  the  Political  Class  Book,  explaining  the 
mode  of  collecting  money  for  the  use  of  our  government, 
by  duties,  and  the  relative  powers  of  the  General  and  State 
Governments.  After  hearing  all  these  lessons  recited, 
with  my  remarks  in  addition,  you  will  be  the  better  able  to 
understand  the  subject,  and  then  I  shall  bring  in  a  news- 
paper now  and  then,  and  keep  you  acquainted  with  the 
progress  of  the  affair." 

Now  the  propriety  of  taking  up  the  particular  subject, 
8 


86  INSTRUCTION. 

which  I  have  here  introduced,  by  way  of  illustration,  in 
such  a  way,  would  depend  altogether  upon  the  character 
and  standing  of  the  school,  the  age  and  mental  maturity 
of  the  scholars,  and  their  capacity  to  understand  the  cir- 
cumstances of  such  a  case,  and  to  appreciate  those  consid- 
erations which  give  interest  to  it.  The  principle  how- 
ever, is  applicable  to  all;  and  one  such  experiment,  dex- 
terously carried  through,  will  do  more  towards  giving  boys 
and  girls,  clear  and  practical  ideas  of  the  reason  why  they 
go  to  school,  and  of  the  importance  of  acquiring  know- 
ledge, than  the  best  lecture  on  such  a  subject,  which  ever 
was  delivered. 

There  is  no  branch  of  study  attended  to  in  school, 
which  may,  by  judicious  efforts,  be  made  more  effectual 
in  accomplishing  this  object, — leading  the  pupils  to  see 
the  practical  utility,  and  the  value  of  knowledge,  than 
composition.  If  such  subjects  as  are  suitable  themes  for 
moral  essays,  are  assigned,  the  scholars  will  indeed  dis- 
like the  work  of  writing,  and  derive  little  benefit  from  it. 
The  mass  of  pupils  in  our  schools,  are  not  to  be  writers 
of  moral  essays  or  orations,  and  they  do  not  need  to  form 
that  style  of  empty,  florid,  verbose  declamation,  which  the 
practice  of  writing  composition  in  our  schools,  as  it  is  too 
frequently  managed,  tends  to  form.  Assign  practical 
subjects, — subjects  relating  to  the  business  of  the  school, 
— or  the  events  taking  place  around  you.  Is  there  a 
question  before  the  community,  on  the  subject  of  the 
location  of  a  new  school-house  ?  Assign  it  to  your  pupils, 
as  a  question  for  discussion,  and  direct  them  not  to  write 
empty  declamation,  but  to  obtain,  from  their  parents,  the 
real  arguments  in  the  case,  and  to  present  them,  dis- 
tinctly and  clearly,  and  in  simple  language,  to  their  com- 
panions. Was  a  building  burnt  by  lightning  in  the  neigh- 
borhood? Let  those  who  saw  the  scene,  describe  it; 
their  productions  to  be  read  by  the  teacher  aloud;  and 
let  them  see  that  clear  description^  please,  and  that  good 
legible  writing  can  be  read  fluently,  and  that  correct 
spelling,  and  punctuation,  and  grammar,  make  the  arti- 
cle go  smoothly  and  pleasantly,  and  enable  it  to  produce 
its  full  effect.  Is  a  public  building  going  forward  in 


INSTRUCTION.  87 

the  neighborhood  of  your  school?  You  can  make  it  a 
very  fruitful  source  of  subjects  and  questions,  to  give 
interest  and  impulse  to  the  studies  of  the  school-room. 
Your  classes  in  geometry  may  measure, — your  arithme- 
ticians may  calculate,  and  make  estimates, — your  writers 
may  describe  its  progress,  from  week  to  week,  and  antici- 
pate the  scenes,  which  it  will  in  future  years  exhibit. 

By  such  means,  the  practical  bearings  and  relations  of 
the  studies  of  the  school-room,  may  be  constantly  kept 
in  view;  but  I  ought  to  guard  the  teacher,  while  on  this 
subject,  most  distinctly,  against  the  danger  of  making 
the  school-room  a  scene  of  literary  amusement,  instead  of 
study.  These  means  of  awakening  interest,  and  reliev- 
ing the  tedium  of  the  uninterrupted  and  monotonous  study 
of  text  books,  must  not  encroach  on  the  regular  duties  of 
the  school.  They  must  be  brought  forward  with  judg- 
ment and  moderation,  and  made  subordinate  and  subser- 
vient to  these  regular  duties.  Their  design  is,  to  give 
spirit,  and  interest,  and  a  feeling  of  practical  utility,  to 
what  the  pupils  are  doing,  and  if  resorted  to,  with  these 
restrictions,  and  within  these  limits,  they  will  produce 
powerful,  but  safe  results. 

Another  way  to  excite  interest,  and  that  of  the  right 
kind  in  school,  is  not  to  remove  difficulties,  but  to  teach 
the  pupils  how  to  surmount  them.  A  text  book  so  con- 
trived as  to  make  study  mere  play,  and  to  dispense  with 
thought  and  effort,  is  the  worst  text  book  that  can  be 
made,  and  the  surest  to  be,  in  the  end,  a  dull  one.  The 
great  source  of  literary  enjoyment,  which  is  the  success- 
ful exercise  of  intellectual  power,  is,  by  such  a  mode  of 
presenting  a  subject,  cut  off.  Secure  therefore  severe 
study.  Let  the  pupil  see  that  you  are  aiming  to  secure 
it,  and  that  the  pleasure  which  you  expect  that  they  will 
receive,  is  that  of  firmly  and  patiently  encountering  and 
overcoming  difficulty;  of  penetrating,  by  steady  and  per- 
severing effort,  into  regions,  from  which  the  idle  and  the 
inefficient  are  debarred;  and  that  it  is  your  province  to 
lead  them  forward,  not  to  carry  them.  They  will  soon 
understand  this,  and  like  it. 

Never  underrate  the  difficulties  which  your  pupils  will 


88  INSTRUCTION. 

have  to  encounter,  or  try  to  persuade  them  that  what  you 
assign  is  easy.  Doing  easy  things  is  generally  dull  work, 
and  it  is  especially  discouraging  and  disheartening  for  a 
pupil  to  spend  his  strength  in  doing  what  is  really  difficult 
for  him,  when  his  instructer,  by  calling  his  work  easy, 
gives  him  no  credit,  for  what  may  have  been  severe  and 
protracted  labor.  If  a  thing  is  really  hard  for  the  pupil, 
his  teacher  ought  to  know  it,  and  admit  it.  The  child 
then  feels  that  he  has  some  sympathy. 

It  is  astonishing  how  great  an  influence  may  be  exert- 
ed over  a  child,  by  his  simply  knowing  that  his  efforts  are 
observed  and  appreciated.  You  pass  a  boy  in  the  street, 
wheeling  a  heavy  load,  in  a  barrow;  now  simply  stop  to 
look  at  him,  with  a  countenance  which  says,  "  that  is  a 
heavy  load;  I  should  not  think  that  boy  could  wheel  it;" 
and  how  quick  will  your  look  give  fresh  strength  and 
vigor  to  his  efforts.  On  the  other  hand,  when,  in  such  a 
case,  the  boy  is  faltering  under  his  load,  try  the  effect  of 
telling  him,  "  Why,  that  is  not  heavy;  you  can  wheel  it 
easily  enough;  trundle  it  along."  The  poor  boy  will  drop 
his  load,  disheartened  and  discouraged,  and  sit  down 
upon  it,  in  despair.  No,  even  if  the  work  you  are  assign- 
ing to  a  class  is  easy,  do  not  tell  them  so,  unless  you 
wish  to  destroy  all  their  spirit  and  interest  in  doing  it; 
and  if  you  wish  to  excite  their  spirit  and  interest,  make 
your  work  difficult,  and  let  them  see  that  you  know  it  is 
so.  Not  so  difficult  as  to  tax  their  powers  too  heavily, 
but  enough  so,  to  require  a  vigorous  and  persevering  ef- 
fort. Let  them  distinctly  understand  too,  that  you  know  it 
is  difficult, — that  you  mean  to  make  it  so, — but  that  they 
have  your  sympathy  and  encouragement,  in  the  efforts 
which  it  calls  them  to  make. 

You  may  satisfy  yourself  that  human  nature  is,  in  this 
respect,  what  I  have  described,  by  some  such  experiment 
as  the  following: — Select  two  classes,  not  very  familiar 
with  elementary  arithmetic,  and  offer  to  each  of  them  the 
following  example  in  Addition: — 

123456789 
234567891 
345678912 
&c.  &c. 


INSTRUCTION.  89 

The  numbers  may  be  continued,  according  to  the  ob- 
vious law  regulating  the  above,  until  each  one  of  the  nine 
digits  has  commenced  the  line.  Or,  if  you  chose  Multi- 
plication, let  the  example  be  this: — 

Multiply     123456789 
by        123456789 

Now,  when  you  bring  the  example  to  one  of  the  classes, 
address  the  pupils  as  follows: — 

"  I  have  contrived  for  you  a  very  difficult  sum.  It  is 
the  most  difficult  one  that  can  be  made,  with  the  number 
of  figures  contained  in  it,  and  I  do  not  think  that  any  of 
you  can  do  it,  but  you  may  try.  I  shall  not  be  surprised 
if  every  answer  should  contain  mistakes." 

To  the  other  class,  say  as  follows: — 

(f  I  have  prepared  an  example  for  you,  which  I  wish 
you  to  be  very  careful  to  perform  correctly.  It  is  a  little 
longer  than  those  you  have  had  heretofore,  but  it  is  to  be 
performed  upon  the  same  principles,  and  you  can  all  do 
it  correctly,  if  you  really  try." 

Now  under  such  circumstances  the  first  class  will  go  to 
their  seats  with  ardor  and  alacrity;  determined  to  show 
you  that  they  can  do  work,  even  if  it  is  difficult.  And  if 
they  succeed,  £hey  come  to  the  class  the  jiext  day,  with 
pride  and  pleasure.  They  have  accomplished  something, 
which  you  admit  it  was  not  easy  to  accomplish.  On  the 
other  hand,  the  second  class  will  go  to  their  seats,  with 
murmuring  looks  and  words;  and  with  a  hearty  dislike  of 
the  task  you  have  assigned  them.  They  know  that  they 
have  something  to  do,  which,  however  easy  it  may  be  to 
the  teacher,  is  really  difficult  for  them,  and  they  have 
to  be  perplexed  and  wearied  with  the  work,  without  hav- 
ing at  last,  even  the  little  satisfaction  of  knowing  that  the 
teacher  appreciates  the  difficulties  with  which  they  had 
to  contend. 

2.  We  now  come  to  consider  the  subject  of  rendering 
assistance  to  the  pupil,  which  is  one  of  the  most  important 
and  delicate  parts  of  a  teacher's  work.  The  great  differ- 
ence, which  exists  among  teachers,  in  regard  to  the  skill 
8* 


90  INSTRUCTION. 

they  possess  in  this  part  of  their  duty,  is  so  striking  that 
it  is  very  often  noticed  by  others; and  perhaps  skill  here 
is  of  more  avail,  in  deciding  the  question  of  success  or 
failure,  than  any  thing  besides.     The  first  great  principle., 
is,  however,  simple  and  effectual. 

(1.)  Divide  and  subdivide  a  difficult  process,  until  your 
steps  are  so  short,  that  the  pupil  can  easily  take  them. 

Most  teachers  forget  the  difference  between  the  pupil's 
capacity  and  their  own,  and  they  pass  rapidly  forward, 
through  a  difficult  train  of  thought,  in  their  own  ordinary 
gait,  their  unfortunate  followers  vainly  trying  to  keep  up 
with  them.  The  case  is  precisely  analagous  to  that  of 
the  father,  who  walks  with  the  step  of  a  man,  while  his 
little  son  is  by  his  side,  wearying  and  exhausting  himself, 
with  fruitless  efforts  to  reach  his  feet  as  far,  and  to  move 
them  as  rapidly,  as  a  full  grown  man. 

But  to  show  what  I  mean  by  subdividing  a  difficult 
process,  so  as  to  make  each  step  simple,  I  will  take  a 
case  which  may  serve  as  an  example.  I  will  suppose 
that  the  teacher  of  a  common  school,  undertakes  to  show 
his  boys,  who,  we  will  suppose,  are  acquainted  with  no-- 
thing but  elementary  arithmetic,  how  longitude  is  ascer- 
tained, by  means  of  the  eclipses  of  Jupiter's  satellites; 
not  a  very  simple  question,  (as  it  would,  at  first  view, 
strike  one,)  but  still  one  which,  like  all  others,  may  be, 
merely  by  the  power  of  the  subdivision  alluded  to,  easily 
explained.  I  will  suppose  that  the  subject  has  come  up 
at  a  general  exercise, — perhaps  the  question  was  asked 
in  writing,  by  one  of  the  older  boys.  I  will  present  the 
explanation,  chiefly  in  the  form  of  question  and  answer, 
that  it  may  be  seen,  that  the  steps  are  so  short,  that  the 
boys  may  take  them  themselves. 

"  Which  way,"  asks  the  teacher,  "  are  the  Rocky 
Mountains  from  us?" 

"  West,"  answer  two  or  three  of  the  boys. 

In  such  cases  as  this,  it  is  very  desirable  that  the  an- 
swers should  be  general,  so  that  throughout  the  school, 
there  should  be  a  spirited  interest  in  the  questions  and 
replies.  This  will  never  be  the  case,  if  a  small  number 
of  the  boys,  only,  take  part  in  the  answers;  and  many 


INSTRUCTION.  91 

teachers  complain,  that,  when  they  try  this  experiment, 
they  can  seldom  induce  many  of  the  pupils  to  take  a  part 

The  reason  ordinarily  is,  that  they  say  that  any  of  the 
boys  may  answer,  instead  of  that  all  of  them  may.  The 
boys  do  not  get  the  idea  that  it  is  wished  that  an  univer- 
sal reply  should  come  from  all  parts  c-f  the  room  in  which 
every  one's  voice  should  be  heard.  If  the  answers  were 
feeble,  in  the  instance  we  are  supposing,  the  teacher 
would  perhaps  say; 

"  I  only  heard  one  or  two  answers:  do  not  more  of 
you  know  where  the  Rocky  Mountains  are?  Will  you 
all  think,  and  answer  together?  Which  way  are  they 
from  us?" 

"  West,"  answer  a  large  number  of  boys. 

"  You  do  not  answer  fully  enough  yet;  I  do  not  think 
more  than  forty  answered,  and  there  are  about  sixty  here. 
I  should  like  to  have  every  one  in  the  room  answer,  and  all 
precisely  together." 

He  then  repeats  the  question,  and  obtains  a  full  re- 
sponse. A  similar  effort  will  always  succeed. 

"Now,  does  the  sun,  in  going  round  the  earth,  pass 
over  the  Rocky  Mountains,  or  over  us,  first?" 

To  this  question,  the  teacher  hears  a  confused  answer. 
Some  do  not  reply;  some  say,  ic  Over  the  Rocky  Moun- 
tains;" others,  "  Over  us;"  and  others  still,  "  The  sun 
does  not  move  at  all." 

"  It  is  true  that  the  sun,  strictly  speaking,  does  not 
move;  the  earth  turns  round,  presenting  the  various  coun- 
tries, in  succession,  to  the  sun,  but  the  effect  is  precisely 
the  same  as  it  would  be,  if  the  sun  moved,  and  according- 
ly I  use  that  language.  Now,  how  long  does  it  take  the 
sun  to  pass  round  the  earth?" 

"Twelve  hours." 

"  Does  he  go  towards  the  west,  or  towards  the  east, 
from  us?" 

"  Towards  the  west." 

But  it  is  not  necessary  to  give  the  replies;  the  ques- 
tions alone  will  be  sufficient.  The  reader  will  observe  that 
they  inevitably  lead  the  pupil,  by  short  and  simple  steps, 
to  a  clear  understanding  of  the  point  to  be  explained. 


92  INSTRUCTION. 

"  Will  the  sun  go  towards,  or  from,  the  Rocky  Moun- 
tains, after  leaving  us?" 

"  How  long  did  you  say  it  takes  the  sun  to  go  round  the 
globe,  and  come  to  us  again?" 

"  How  long  to  go  half  round?"  "  Quarter  round?" 

"  How  long  will  it  take  him  to  go  to  the  Rocky  Moun- 
tains?" 

No  answer. 

"  You  cannot  tell.  It  would  depend  upon  the  distance. 
Suppose  then  the  Rocky  Mountains  were  half  round  the 
globe,  how  long  would  it  take  the  sun  to  go  to  them?" 
"  Suppose  they  were  quarter  round?" 

"The  whole  distance  is  divided  into  portions  called  de- 
grees; 360  in  all.  How  many  will  the  sun  pass,  in  going 
half  round?  In  going  quarter  round?" 

"  Forty-five  degrees  then  make  one  quarter  of  the  cir- 
cumference of  the  globe.  This  you  have  already  said  will 
take  three  hours.  In  one  hour  then,  how  many  degrees 
will  the  sun  pass  over?" 

Perhaps  no  answer.  If  so,  the  teacher  will  subdivide 
the  question,  on  the  principle  we  are  explaining,  so  as  to 
make  the  steps  such  that  the  pupils  can  take  them. 

"  How  many  degrees  will  the  sun  pass  over  in  three 
hours?" 

"  Forty-five." 

"  How  large  a  part  of  that,  then,  will  he  pass,  in  one 
hour?" 

"  One  third  of  it." 

"  And  what  is  one  third  of  forty-five?" 

The  boys  would  readily  answer  fifteen,  and  the  teacher 
would  then  dwell  for  a  moment,  on  the  general  truth,  thus 
deduced,  that  the  sun,  in  passing  round  the  earth,  passes 
over  fifteen  degrees  every  hour. 

"  Suppose  then  it  takes  the  sun  one  hour  to  go  from  us 
to  the  river  Mississippi,  how  many  degrees  west  of  us, 
would  the  river  be?" 

Having  thus  familiarized  the  pupils  to  the  fact,  that  the 
motion  of  the  sun  is  a  proper  measure  of  the  difference 
of  longitude  between  two  places,  the  teacher  must  dismiss 
the  subject,  for  a  day,  and  when  the  next  opportunity  of 


INSTRUCTION.  93 

bringing  it  forward  occurs,  he  would  perhaps  take  up  the 
subject  of  the  sun's  motion  as  a  measure  of  time. 

"  Is  the  sun  ever  exactly  over  our  heads?" 

"  Is  he  ever  exactly  south  of  us?" 

"  When  he  is  exactly  south  of  us,  or  in  other  words, 
exactly  opposite  to  us,  in  his  course  round  the  earth,  he 
is  said  to  be  in  our  meridian.  For  the  word  meridian 
means  a  line  drawn  exactly  north  or  south  from  any  place." 

There  is  no  limit  to  the  simplicity  which  may  be  impart- 
ed, even  to  the  most  difficult  subjects,  by  subdividing  the 
steps.  This  point  for  instance,  the  meaning  of  meridian, 
may  be  the  subject,  if  it  were  necessary,  of  many  ques- 
tions, which  would  render  it  simple  to  the  youngest  child. 
The  teacher  may  point  to  the  various  articles  in  the  room, 
or  buildings,  or  other  objects  without,  and  ask  if  they  are 
or  are  not  in  his  meridian.  But  to  proceed: 

"  When  the  sun  is  exactly  opposite  to  us,  in  the  south, 
at  the  highest  point  to  which  he  rises,  what  o'clock  is  it?" 

"  When  the  sun  is  exactly  opposite  to  us,  can  he  be  op- 
posite to  the  Rocky  Mountains?" 

"  Does  he  get  opposite  to  the  Rocky  Mountains,  before, 
or  after,  he  is  opposite  to  us?" 

"  When  he  is  opposite  to  the  Rocky  Mountains,  what 
o'clock  is  it  there?" 

"  Is  it  twelve  o'clock  here,  then,  before^  or  after  it  is 
twelve  o'clock  there?" 

"  Suppose  the  river  Mississippi  is  fifteen  degrees  from 
us,  how  long  is  it  twelve  o'clock  here,  before  it  is  twelve 
o'clock  there?" 

"  When  it  is  twelve  o'clock  here  then,  what  time  will  it 
be  there?" 

Some  will  probably  answer  "  one,"  and  some  "elev- 
en." If  so,  the  step  is  too  long,  and  may  be  subdivided 
thus: 

"  When  it  is  noon  here,  is  the  sun  going  towards  the 
Mississippi,  or  has  he  passed  it?" 

"  Then  has  noon  gone  by,  at  that  river,  or  has  it  not  yet 
come?" 

"Then  will  it  be  one  hour  before,  or  one  hour  after 
noon?" 


94  INSTRUCTION. 

"  Then  will  it  be  eleven,  or  one?" 

Such  minuteness  and  simplicity  would,  in  ordinary  cases, 
not  be  necessary.  I  go  into  it  here,  merely  to  show,  how, 
by  simply  subdividing  the  steps,  a  subject  ordinarily  per- 
plexing, may  be  made  plain.  The  reader  will  observe  that 
in  the  above,  there  are  no  explanations  by  the  teacher, 
there  are  not  even  leading  questions;  that  is,  there  are 
no  questions  whose  form  suggests  the  answers  desired. 
The  pupil  goes  on  from  step  to  step,  simply  because  he 
has  but  one  short  step  to  take  at  a  time. 

11  Can  it  be  noon,  then,"  continues  the  teacher,  "  here 
and  at  a  place  fifteen  degrees  west  of  us,  at  the  same 
time?" 

"  Can  it  be  noon  here,  and  at  a  place  ten  miles  west  of 
us,  at  the  same  time?" 

It  is  unnecessary  to  continue  the  illustration,  for  it  will 
be  very  evident  to  every  reader,  that  by  going  forward  in 
this  way,  the  whole  subject  may  be  laid  out  before  the 
pupils,  so  that  they  shall  perfectly  understand  it.  They 
can,  by  a  series  of  questions  like  the  above,  be  led  to 
see  by  their  own  reasoning,  that  time,  as  denoted  by  the 
clock,  must  differ  in  every  two  places,  not  upon  the  same 
meridian,  and  that  the  difference  must  be  exactly  propor- 
tional to  the  difference  of  longitude.  So  that  a  watch, 
which  is  right  in  one  place,  cannot,  strictly  speaking,  be 
right  in  any  other  place,  east  or  west  of  the  first:  and 
that,  if  the  time  of  day,  at  two  places,  can  be  compared, 
either  by  taking  a  chronometer  from  one  to  another,  or  by 
observing  some  celestial  phenomenon,  like  the  eclipses  of 
Jupiter's  satellites,  and  ascertaining  precisely  the  time  of 
their  occurrence,  according  to  the  reckoning  at  both;  the 
distances  east  or  west,  by  degrees,  may  be  determined. 
The  reader  will  observe,  too,  that  the  method  by  which 
this  explanation  is  made,  is  strictly  in  accordance  with  the 
principle  I  am  illustrating, — which  is  by  simply  dividing 
the  process  into  short  steps.  There  is  no  ingenious  reason- 
ing on  the  part  of  the  teacher,  no  happy  illustrations;  no 
apparatus,  no  diagrams.  It  is  a  pure  process  of  mathe- 
matical reasoning,  made  clear  and  easy  by  simple  an- 
alysis. 


INSTRUCTION  95 

In  applying  this  method,  however,  the  teacher  should 
be  very  careful  not  to  subdivide  too  much.  It  is  best  that 
the  pupils  should  walk  as  fast  as  they  can.  The  object 
of  the  teacher  should  be  to  smooth  the  path,  not  much 
more  than  barely  enough  to  enable  the  pupil  to  go  on. 
He  should  not  endeavor  to  make  it  very  easy. 

(2.)  Truths  must  not  only  be  taught  to  the  pupils,  but 
they  must  be  fixed,  and  made  familiar.  This  is  a  point 
which  seems  to  be  very  generally  overlooked. 

"  Can  you  say  the  Multiplication  Table?  "  said  a  teach- 
er, to  a  boy,  who  was  standing  before  him,  in  his  class. 

' '  Yes  sir." 

"  Well,  I  should  like  to  have  you  say  the  line  beginning 
nine  times  one." 

The  boy  repeated  it  slowly,  but  correctly. 

<c  Now  I  should  like  to  have  you  try  again,  and  I  will, 
at  the  same  time,  say  another  line,  to  see  if  I  can  put  you 
out." 

The  boy  looked  surprised.  The  idea  of  his  teacher's 
trying  to  perplex  and  embarrass  him,  was  entirely  new. 

"  You  must  not  be  afraid,"  said  the  teacher;  "  you  will 
undoubtedly  not  succeed  in  getting  through,  but  you  will 
not  be  to  blame  for  the  failure.  I  only  try  it,  as  a  sort  of 
intellectual  experiment." 

The  boy  accordingly  began  again,  but  was  soon  com- 
pletely confused  by  the  teacher's  accompaniment;  he  stop- 
ped in  the  middle  of  his  line  saying, 

"  I  could  say  it,  only  you  put  me  out." 

<c  Well,  now  try  to  say  the  Alphabet,  and  let  me  see  if  I 
can  put  you  out  there." 

As  might  have  been  expected  the  teacher  failed.  The 
boy  went  regularly  onward  to  the  end. 

"  You  see  now,"  said  the  teacher  to  the  class  which 
had  witnessed  the  experiment,  £C  that  this  boy  knows  his 
Alphabet,  in  a  different  sense,  from  that  in  which  he  knows 
his  Multiplication  table.  In  the  latter,  his  knowledge  is 
only  imperfectly  his  own;  he  can  make  use  of  it  only  under 
favorable  circumstances.  In  the  former  it  is  entirely  his 
own;  circumstances  have  no  control  over  him." 

A  child  has  a  lesson  in  Latin  Grammar  to  recite.     She 


96  INSTRUCTION. 

hesitates  and  stammers,  miscalls  the  cases,  and  then  cor- 
rects herself,  and  if  she  gets  through  at  last,  she  consid- 
ers herself  as  having  recited  well;  and  very  many  teach- 
ers would  consider  it  well  too.  If  she  hesitates  a  little 
longer  than  usual,  in  trying  to  summon  to  her  recollection 
a  particular  word,  she  says,  perhaps,  "  Don't  tell  me,"  and 
if  she  happens  at  last  to  guess  right,  she  takes  her  book 
with  a  countenance  beaming  with  satisfaction. 

"  Suppose  you  had  the  care  of  an  infant  school,"  might 
the  instructer  say  to  such  a  scholar,  "  and  were  endeavor- 
ing to  teach  a  little  child  to  count,  and  she  should  recite 
her  lesson  to  you  in  this  way;  f  One,  two,  four,  no,  three; 

— one,  two,  three, stop,  don't  tell  me,  —  five  —  no 

four — four — ,  five, I  shall  think  in  a  minute, — 

six — is  that  right?  five,  six,  &c.5  Should  you  call  that 
reciting  well? " 

Nothing  is  more  common  than  for  pupils  to  say,  when 
they  fail  of  reciting  their  lesson,  that  they  could  say  it  at 
their  seats,  but  that  they  cannot  now  say  it,  before  the 
class.  When  such  a  thing  is  said  for  the  first  time,  it 
should  not  be  severely  reproved,  because  nine  children  in 
ten  honestly  think,  that  if  the  lesson  was  learned  so  that 
it  could  be  recited  any  where,  their  duty  is  discharged. 
But  it  should  be  kindly,  though  distinctly  explained  to 
them,  that,  in  the  business  of  life,  they  must  have  their 
knowledge  so  much  at  command,  that  they  can  use  it,  at 
all  times,  and  in  all  circumstances,  or  it  will  do  them  little 
good. 

One  of  the  most  common  causes  of  difficulty  in  pur- 
suing mathematical  studies,  or  studies  of  any  kind,  where 
the  succeeding  lessons  depend  upon  those  which  precede, 
is  the  fact  that  the  pupil,  though  he  may  understand  what 
precedes,  is  not  familiar  with  it.  This  is  very  strikingly 
the  case  with  Geometry.  The  class  study  the  definitions, 
and  the  teacher  supposes  they  fully  understand  them;  in 
fact,  they  do  understand  them,  but  the  name  and  the  thing 
are  so  feebly  connected  in  their  minds,  that  a  direct  effort, 
and  a  short  pause,  are  necessary  to  recall  the  idea,  when 
they  hear  or  see  the  word.  When  they  come  on  therefore 
to  the  demonstrations,  which,  in  themselves,  would  be 


INSTRUCTION.  97 

difficult  enough,  they  have  double  duty  to  perform.  The 
words  used  do  not  readily  suggest  the  idea,  and  the  con- 
nexion of  the  ideas  requires  careful  study.  Under  this 
double  burden,  many  a  young  geometrician  sinks  discour- 
aged. 

A  class  should  go  on  slowly,  and  dwell  on  details,  so 
long  as  to  fix  firmly,  and  make  perfectly  familiar,  what- 
ever they  undertake  to  learn.  In  this  manner,  the  know- 
ledge they  acquire  will  become  their  own.  It  will  be  in- 
corporated, as  it  were,  into  their  very  minds,  and  they 
cannot  afterwards  be  deprived  of  it. 

The  exercises  which  have  for  their  object  this  rendering 
familiar  what  has  been  learned,  may  be  so  varied  as  to 
interest  the  pupil  very  much,  instead  of  being  tiresome,  as 
it  might,  at  first  be  supposed. 

Suppose,  for  instance,  a  teacher  has  explained  to  a  large 
class  in  grammar,  the  difference  between  an  adjective 
and  an  adverb:  if  he  leave  it  here,  in  a  fortnight,  one 
half  would  have  forgotten  the  distinction,  but  by  dwelling 
upon  it,  a  few  lessons,  he  may  fix  it  for  ever.  The  first 
lesson  might  be  to  write  twenty  short  sentences  contain- 
ing only  adjectives.  The  second  to  write  twenty,  contain- 
ing only  adverbs.  The  third,  to  write  sentences  in  two 
forms,  one  containing  the  adjective,  and  the  other  express- 
ing the  same  idea  by  means  of  the  adverb,  arranging  them 
in  two  columns,  thus, 

He  writes  well.      |      His  writing  is  good. 

Again,  they  may  make  out  a  list  of  adjectives,  with  the 
adverbs  derived  from  each,  in  another  column.  Then 
they  may  classify  adverbs  on  the  principle  of  their  mean- 
ing, or  according  to  their  termination.  The  exercise  may 
be  infinitely  varied,  and  yet  the  object  of  the  whole  may 
be,  to  make  perfectly  familiar,  and  to  fix  for  ever  in  the 
mind,  the  distinction  explained. 

These  two  points  seem  to  me  to  be  fundamental,  so  far 
as  assisting  pupils  through  the  difficulties  which  lie  in  their 
way,  is  concerned.  Diminish  the  difficulties  as  far  as  is 
necessary,  by  merely  shortening  and  simplifying  the  stepa, 
and  make  thorough  work  as  you  go  on.  These  principles 

9 


98  INSTRUCTION. 

carried  steadily  into  practice,  will  be  effectual,  in  leading 
any  mind  through  any  difficulties  which  may  occur.  And 
though  they  cannot  perhaps  be  fully  applied  to  every  mind, 
in  a  large  school,  yet  they  can  be  so  far  acted  upon,  in 
reference  to  the  whole  mass,  as  to  accomplish  the  object 
for  a  very  large  majority. 

3.  General  cautions.  A  few  miscellaneous  suggestions, 
which  we  shall  include  under  this  head,  will  conclude  this 
chapter. 

(1.)  Never  do  any  thing  for  a  scholar,  but  teach  him  to 
do  it  for  himself.  How  many  cases  occur,  in  the  schools 
of  our  country,  where  the  boy  brings  his  slate  to  the 
teacher,  saying  he  cannot  do  a  certain  sum.  The  teacher 
takes  the  slate  and  pencil, — performs  the  work  in  silence, 
— brings  the  result, — and  returns  the  slate  to  the  hands  of 
his  pupil,  who  walks  off  to  his  seat,  and  goes  to  work  on 
the  next  example;  perfectly  satisfied  with  the  manner  in 
which  he  is  passing  on.  A  man  who  has  not  done  this  a 
hundred  times  himself,  will  hardly  believe  it  possible  that 
such  a  practice  can  prevail.  It  is  so  evidently  a  waste 
of  time,  both  for  master  and  scholar. 

(2.)  Never  get  out  of  patience  with  dulness.  Perhaps 
I  ought  to  say,  never  get  out  of  patience  with  any  thing. 
That  would  perhaps  be  the  wisest  rule.  But  above  all 
things,  remember  that  dulness  and  stupidity,  and  you 
will  certainly  find  them  in  every  school,  are  the  very  last 
things  to  get  out  of  patience  with.  If  the  Creator  has  so 
formed  the  mind  of  a  boy,  that  he  must  go  through  life 
slowly  and  with  difficulty,  impeded  by  obstructions  which 
others  do  not  feel,  and  depressed  by  discouragements 
which  others  never  know,  his  lot  is  surely  hard  enough, 
without  having  you  to  add  to  it  the  trials  and  suffering, 
which  sarcasm  and  reproach  from  you,  can  heap  upon  him. 
Look  over  your  school-room,  therefore,  and  wherever  you 
find  one,  whom  you  perceive  the  Creator  to  have  endued 
with  less  intellectual  power  than  others,  fix  your  eye  upon 
him  with  an  expression  of  kindness  and  sympathy.  Such 
a  boy  will  have  suffering  enough  from  the  selfish  tyranny 
of  his  companions ;  he  ought  to  find  in  you,  a  protector  and 
friend.  One  of  the  greatest  pleasures  which  a  .teacher's 


INSTRUCTION.  99 

life  affords,  is,  the  interest  of  seeking  out  such  an  one, 
bowed  down  with  burdens  of  depression  and  discourage- 
ment,— unaccustomed  to  sympathy  and  kindness,  and  ex- 
pecting nothing  for  the  future,  but  a  weary  continuation 
of  the  cheerless  toils,  which  have  imbittered  the  past; — 
and  the  pleasure  of  taking  off  the  burden,  of  surprising 
the  timid  disheartened  sufferer  by  kind  words  and  cheering 
looks,  and  of  seeing,  in  his  countenance,  the  expression 
of  ease  and  even  of  happiness,  gradually  returning. 

(3.)  The  teacher  should  be  interested  in  all  his  scholars, 
and  aim  equally  to  secure  the  progress  of  all.  Let  there 
be  no  neglected  ones  in  the  school  room.  We  should  al- 
ways remember  that,  however  unpleasant  in  countenance 
and  manners  that  bashful  boy,  in  the  corner,  may  be,  or 
however  repulsive  in  appearance,  or  unhappy  in  disposi- 
tion, that  girl,  seeming  to  be  interested  in  nobody,  and 
nobody  appearing  interested  in  her,  they  still  have,  each 
of  them,  a  mother,  who  loves  her  own  child,  and  takes  a 
deep  and  constant  interest  in  its  history.  Those  mothers 
have  a  right  too,  that  their  children  should  receive  their 
full  share  of  attention,  in  a  school  which  has  been  estab- 
lished for  the  common  and  equal  benefit  of  all. 

(4.)  Do  not  hope  or  attempt  to  make  all  your  pupils 
alike.  Providence  has  determined  that  human  minds 
should  differ  from  each  other,  for  the  very  purpose  of  giv- 
ing variety  and  interest  to  this  busy  scene  of  life.  Now 
if  it  were  possible  for  a  teacher,  so  to  plan  his  operations, 
as  to  send  his  pupils  forth  upon  the  community,  formed 
on  the  same  model,  as  if  they  were  made  by  machinery, 
he  would  do  so  much,  towards  spoiling  one  of  the  wisest 
of  the  plans  which  the  Almighty  has  formed,  for  making 
this  world  a  happy  scene.  Let  it  be  the  teacher's  aim  to 
cooperate  with,  not  vainly  to  attempt  to  thwart  the  designs 
of  Providence.  We  should  bring  out  those  powers  with 
which  the  Creator  has  endued  the  minds  placed  under  our 
control.  We  must  open  our  garden  to  such  influences  as 
shall  bring  forward  all  the  plants,  each,  in  a  way  corres- 
ponding to  its  own  nature.  It  is  impossible,  if  it  were 
wise,  and  it  would  be  foolish,  if  it  were  possible,  to  stimu- 
late, by  artificial  means,  the  rose,  in  hope  of  its  reaching 


100  INSTRUCTION. 

the  size  and  magnitude  of  the  apple-tree,  or  to  try  to  culti-; 
vate  the  fig  and  the  orange,  where  wheat  only  will  grow. 
No;  it  should  be  the  teacher's  main  design,  to  shelter  his 
pupils  from  every  deleterious  influence,  and  to  bring  every 
thing  to  bear  upon  the  community  of  minds  before  him, 
which  will  encourage,  in  each  one,  the  developement  of 
its  own  native  powers.  For  the  rest,  he  must  remember 
that  his  province  is  to  cultivate,  not  to  create. 

Error  on  this  point,  is  very  common.  Many  teachers, 
even  among  those  who  have  taken  high  rank,  through  the 
success  with  which  they  have  labored  in  this  field,  have 
wasted  much  time,  in  attempting  to  do  what  can  never  be 
done;  to  form  the  character  of  those  brought  under  their 
influence,  after  a  certain  uniform  model,  which  they  have 
conceived  as  the  standard  of  excellence.  Their  pupils 
must  write  just  such  a  hand,  they  must  compose  in  just 
such  a  style,  they  must  be  similar  in  sentiment  and  feel- 
ing, and  their  manners  must  be  formed  according  to  a  fixed 
and  uniform  model;  and  when,  in  such  a  case,  a  pupil 
comes  under  their  charge  whom  Providence  has  designed 
to  be  entirely  different  from  the  beau  ideal  adopted  as  the 
standard,  more  time  and  pains,  and  anxious  solicitude  is 
wasted  in  vain  attempts  to  produce  the  desired  conformity, 
than  half  the  school  require  beside. 

(5.)  Do  not  allow  the  faults  or  obliquities  of  character, 
or  the  intellectual  or  moral  wants,  of  any  individual,  of 
your  pupils,  to  engross  a  disproportionate  share  of  your 
time.  I  have  already  said,  that  those  who  are  peculiarly 
in  need  of  sympathy  or  help,  should  receive  the  special 
attention  they  seem  to  require;  what  I  mean  to  say  now, 
is,  do  not  carry  this  to  an  extreme.  When  a  parent  sends 
you  a  pupil,  who,  in  consequence  of  neglect  or  misman- 
agement, at  home,  has  become  wild  and  ungovernable, 
and  full  of  all  sorts  of  wickedness,  he  has  no  right  to  ex- 
pect, that  you  shall  turn  your  attention  away  from  the 
wide  field,  which,  in  your  whole  school-room,  lies  before 
you,  to  spend  your  time,  and  exhaust  your  spirits  and 
strength,  in  endeavoring  to  repair  the  injuries  which  his 
own  neglect  has  occasioned.  When  you  open  a  school, 
you  do  not  engage,  either  openly  or  tacitly,  to  make  every 


INSTRUCTION.  101 

pupil  who  may  be  sent  to  you,  a  learned  or  a  virtuous  man. 
You  do  engage  to  give  them  all  faithful  instruction,  and 
to  bestow  upon  each  such  a  degree  of  attention,  as  is  con- 
sistent with  the  claims  of  the  rest.  But  it  is  both  unwise 
and  unjust,  to  neglect  the  many  trees  in  your  nursery, 
which  by  ordinary  attention,  may  be  made  to  grow  straight 
and  tall,  and  to  bear  good  fruit,  that  you  may  waste  your 
labor  upon  a  crooked  stick,  from  which  all  your  toil  can 
secure  very  little  beauty  or  fruitfulness. 

Let  no  one  now  understand  me  to  say,  that  such  cases 
are  to  be  neglected.  I  admit  the  propriety,  and  in  fact, 
have  urged  the  duty,  of  paying  to  them  a  little  more  than 
their  due  share  of  attention.  What  I  now  condemn  is 
the  practice,  of  which  all  teachers  are  in  danger,  of  devot- 
ing such  a  disproportionate  and  unreasonable  degree  of 
attention  to  them,  as  to  encroach  upon  their  duties  to 
others.  The  school,  the  whole  school,  is  your  field,  the 
elevation  of  the  mass,  in  knowledge  and  virtue,  and  no  in- 
dividual instance,  either  of  dulness  or  precocity,  should 
draw  you  away  from  its  steady  pursuit. 

(6.)  The  teacher  should  guard  against  unnecessarily 
imbibing  those  faulty  mental  habits,  to  which  his  station 
and  employment  expose  him.  Accustomed  to  command, 
and  to  hold  intercourse  with  minds  which  are  immature 
and  feeble,  compared  with  our  own,  we  gradually  acquire 
habits,  that  the  rough  collisions  and  the  friction  of  active 
life,  prevent  from  gathering  around  other  men.  Narrow- 
minded  prejudices  and  prepossessions  are  imbibed,  through 
the  facility,  with  which,  in  our  own  little  community,  we 
adopt  and  maintain  opinions.  A  too  strong  confidence 
in  our  own  views  on  every  subject,  almost  inevitably 
comes,  from  never  hearing  our  opinions  contradicted  or 
called  in  question;  and  we  express  those  opinions  in  a 
tone  of  authority  and  even  sometimes  of  arrogance,  which 
we  acquire  in  the  school-room,  for  there,  when  we  speak, 
nobody  can  reply. 

These  peculiarities  show  themselves  first,  and  in  fact, 
most  commonly,  in  the  school-room;  and  the  opinions  thus 
formed,  very  often  relate  to  the  studies  and  management 
of  the  school.  One  has  a  peculiar  mode  of  teaching  spell- 

9* 


102  INSTRUCTION. 

ing,  which  is  successful  almost  entirely  through  the  ma- 
gic influence  of  his  interest  in  it,  and  he  thinks  no  other 
mode  of  teaching  this  branch,  is  even  tolerable.  Another 
must  have  all  his  pupils  write  on  the  angular  system,  or 
the  anti-angular  system,  and  he  enters  with  all  the  zeal 
into  a  controversy  on  the  subject,  as  if  the  destiny  of  the 
whole  rising  generation,  depended  upon  its  decision.  Tell 
him  that  all  that  is  of  any  consequence  in  any  handwrit- 
ing, is,  that  it  should  be  legible,  rapid,  and  uniform,  and 
that,  for  the  rest,  it  would  be  better  that  every  human  be- 
ing should  write  a  different  hand,  and  he  looks  upon  you 
with  astonishment,  wondering  that  you  cannot  see  the  vital 
importance  of  the  question,  whether  the  vertex  of  an  o 
should  be  pointed  or  round.  So  in  every  thing.  He  has 
his  ivay  in  every  minute  particular, —  a  way  from  which 
he  cannot  deviate,  and  to  which  he  wishes  every  one  else 
to  conform. 

This  set,  formal  mannerism  is  entirely  inconsistent  with 
that  commanding,  intellectual  influence,  which  the  teach- 
er should  exert  in  the  administration  of  his  school.  He 
should  work,  with  what  an  artist  calls  boldness  and  free- 
dom of  touch.  Activity  and  enterprise  of  mind  should 
characterize  all  his  measures,  if  he  wishes  to  make  bold, 
original,  and  efficient  men. 

(7.)  Assume  no  false  appearances,  in  your  school,  either 
as  to  knowledge  or  character.  Perhaps  it  may  justly 
be  said  to  be  the  common  practice  of  teachers  in  this 
country,  to  affect  dignity  of  deportment  in  the  presence  of 
their  pupils,  which,  in  other  cases,  is  laid  aside;  and  to 
pretend  to  superiority  in  knowledge,  and  an  infallibility  of 
judgment,  which  no  sensible  man  would  claim  before  other 
sensible  men,  but  which  an  absurd  fashion  seems  to  re- 
quire of  the  teacher.  It  can  however  scarcely  be  said  to 
be  a  fashion,  for  the  temptation  is  almost  exclusively  con- 
fined to  the  young  and  the  ignorant,  who  think  they  must 
make  up  by  appearance,  what  they  want  in  reality.  Very 
few  of  the  older,  and  more  experienced,  and  successful 
instructers  in  our  country,  fall  into  it  at  all.  But  some 
young  beginner,  whose  knowledge  is  very  limited,  and 
who,  in  manner  and  habits,  has  only  just  ceased  to  be  a 


INSTRUCTION.  103 

boy,  walks  into  his  school-room  with  a  countenance  of 
forced  gravity,  and  with  a  dignified  and  solemn  step, 
which  is  ludicrous  even  to  himself.  I  describe  accurate- 
ly, for  I  describe  from  recollection.  This  unnatural,  and 
forced,  and  ludicrous  dignity,  cleaves  to  him  like  disease, 
through  the  whole  period  of  his  duty.  In  tho  presence  of 
his  scholars,  he  is  always  under  restraint, — assuming  a 
stiff,  and  formal  dignity,  which  is  as  ridiculous  as  it  is  un- 
natural. He  is  also  obliged  to  resort  to  arts  which  are 
certainly  not  very  honorable,  to  conceal  his  ignorance. 

A  scholar,  for  example,  brings  him  a  sum  in  arithme- 
tic, which  he  does  not  know  how  to  perform.  This  may 
be  the  case  with  a  most  excellent  teacher, — and  one  well 
qualified  for  his  business.  In  order  to  be  successful  as 
a  teacher,  it  is  not  necessary  to  understand  every  thing. 
Instead,  however,  of  saying  frankly,  I  do  not  understand 
that  example,  I  will  look  at  it  and  examine  it,  he  looks  at 
it  embarrassed  and  perplexed,  not  knowing  how  he  shall 
escape  the  exposure  of  his  ignorance.  His  first  thought 
is,  to  give  some  general  directions  to  the  pupil,  and  send 
him  to  his  seat  to  make  a  new  experiment,  hoping  that  in 
some  way  or  other,  he  scarcely  knows  how,  he  will  get 
through;  and  at  any  rate,  if  he  does  not,  the  teacher  at 
least  gains  time  by  manoeuvre,  and  is  glad  to  postpone  his 
trouble,  though  he  knows  it  must  soon  return. 

All  efforts  to  conceal  ignorance,  and  all  affectation  of 
knowledge  not  possessed,  are  as  unwise  as  they  are  dis- 
honest. If  a  scholar  asks  a  question  which  you  cannot 
answer,  or  brings  you  a  difficulty  which  you  cannot  solve, 
say  frankly,  "I  do  not  know."  It  is  the  only  way  to 
avoid  continual  anxiety  and  irritation,  and  the  surest  means 
of  securing  real  respect.  Let  the  scholars  understand  that 
the  superiority  of  the  teacher  does  not  consist  in  his  infal- 
libility, or  in  his  universal  acquisitions,  but  in  a  well  bal- 
anced mind,  where  the  boundary  between  knowledge  and 
ignorance  is  distinctly  marked;  in  a  strong  desire  to  go 
forward,  in  mental  improvement;  and  in  fixed  principles 
of  action,  and  systematic  habits.  You  may  even  take  up 
in  school,  a  study  entirely  new  to  you,  and  have  it  under- 
stood at  the  outset,  that  you  know  no  more  of  it  than  the 


104  INSTRUCTION. 

class  commencing,  but  that  you  can  be  their  guide,  on 
account  of  the  superior  maturity  and  discipline  of  your 
powers,  and  the  comparative  ease  with  which  you  can 
meet  and  overcome  difficulties.  This  is  the  understand- 
ing which  ought  always  to  exist  between  master  and 
scholars.  The  fact  that  the  teacher  does  not  know  every 
thing,  cannot  long  be  concealed,  if  he  tries  to  conceal  it; 
and  in  this,  as  in  every  other  case,  HONESTY  is  THE  BEST 
POLICY. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

MORAL     DISCIPLINE. 

UNDER  the  title  which  1  have  placed  at  the  head  of 
this  chapter,  I  intend  to  discuss  the  methods  by  which  the 
teacher  is  to  secure  a  moral  ascendency  over  his  pupils,  so 
that  he  may  lead  them  to  do  what  is  right,  and  bring  them 
back  to  duty,  when  they  do  what  is  wrong.  1  shall  use, 
in  what  I  have  to  say,  a  very  plain  and  familiar  style;  and 
as  very  much  depends,  not  only  on  the  general  principles 
by  which  the  teacher  is  actuated,  but  also  on  the  tone  and 
manner  in  which,  in  cases  of  discipline,  he  addresses  his 
pupils,  I  shall  describe  particular  cases,  real  and  imagin- 
ary, because  by  this  method,  I  can  better  illustrate  the 
course  to  be  pursued.  I  shall  also  present  and  illustrate 
the  various  principles  which  I  consider  important,  and  in 
the  order  in  which  they  occur  to  my  mind. 

1.  The  first  duty  then,  of  the  teacher,  when  he  enters 
his  school,  is,  to  beware  of  the  danger  of  making  an  unfa- 
vorable impression,  at  first,  upon  his  pupils.  Many  years 
ago,  when  I  was  a  child,  the  teacher  of  the  school  where 
my  early  studies  were  performed,  closed  his  connexion 
with  the  establishment,  and,  after  a  short  vacation,  another 
was  expected.  On  the  appointed  day,  the  boys  began  to 
collect,  some  from  curiosity,  at  an  early  hour,  and  many 
speculations  were  started,  as  to  the  character  of  the  new 
instructer.  We  were  standing  near  a  table,  with  our  hats 
on, — and  our  position,  and  the  exact  appearance  of  the 
group  is  indelibly  fixed  on  my  memory, — when  a  small 
and  youthful  looking  man,  entered  the  room,  and  walked 
up  towards  us.  Supposing  him  to  be  some  stranger,  or 
rather,  not  making  any  supposition  at  all,  we  stood  looking 
at  him  as  he  approached,  and  were  thunder-struck  at  hear 


106  MORAL    DISCIPLINE. 

ing  him  accost  us  with  a  stern  voice  and  sterner  brow, 
*e  Take  off  your  hats.  Take  off  your  hats,  and  go  to  your 
seats."  The  conviction  immediately  rushed  upon  our 
minds,  that  this  must  be  our  new  teacher.  The  first  emo- 
tion was  that  of  surprise,  and  the  second  was  that  of  the 
ludicrous ;  though  I  believe  we  contrived  to  smother  the 
laugh,  until  we  got  out  into  the  open  air. 

So  long  since  was  this  little  occurrence,  that  I  have 
entirely  forgotten  the  name  of  the  teacher,  and  have  not 
the  slightest  recollection  of  any  other  act  in  his  adminis- 
tration of  the  school.  But  this  recollection  of  his  first 
greeting  of  his  pupils,  and  the  expression  of  his  counte- 
nance at  the  moment,  will  go  with  me  to  the  end  of  life. 
So  strong  are  first  impressions. 

Be  careful,  then,  when  you  first  see  your  pupils,  that 
you  meet  them  with  a  smile.  1  do  not  mean  a  pretended 
cordiality,  which  has  no  existence  in  the  heart,  but  think  of 
the  relation,  which  you  are  to  sustain  to  them,  and  think  of 
the  very  interesting  circumstances,  under  which,  for  some 
months  at  least,  your  destinies  are  to  be  united  to  theirs, 
until  you  cannot  help  feeling  a  strong  interest  in  them. 
Shut  your  eyes,  for  a  day  or  two,  to  their  faults,  if  possible, 
and  take  an  interest  in  all  their  pleasures  and  pursuits,  that 
the  first  attitude,  in  which  you  exhibit  yourself  before 
them,  may  be  one,  which  shall  allure,  not  repel. 

2.  In  endeavoring  to  correct  the  faults  of  your  pupils, 
do  not,  as  many  teachers  do,  seize  only  upon  those  par- 
ticular  cases  of  transgression,  which  may  happen  to  come 
under  your  notice.  These  individual  instances  are  very 
few,  probably,  compared  with  the  whole  number  of  faults, 
against  which  you  ought  to  exert  an  influence.  And 
though  you  perhaps  ought  not  to  neglect  those,  which 
may  accidentally  come  under  your  notice,  yet  the  observ- 
ing and  punishing  such  cases,  is  a  very  small  part  of  your 
duty. 

You  accidentally  hear,  I  will  suppose,  as  you  are  walk- 
ing home  from  school,  two  of  your  boys  in  earnest  con- 
versation, and  one  of  them  uses  profane  language.  Now, 
the  course  to  be  pursued  in  such  a  case,  is  most  evidently, 
not  to  call  the  boy  to  you,  the  next  day,  and  punish  him, 


MORAL    DISCIPLINE.  107 

and  there  let  the  matter  rest.  This  would  perhaps  be 
better  than  nothing.  But  the  chief  impression  which  it 
would  make  upon  the  individual,  and  upon  the  other 
scholars,  would  be,  "  I  must  take  care  how  I  let  the  mas- 
ter hear  me  use  such  language  again."  A  wise  teacher, 
who  takes  enlarged  and  extended  views  of  his  duty,  in 
regard  to  the  moral  progress  of  his  pupils,  would  act  very 
differently.  He  would  look  at  the  whole  subject.  "  Does 
this  fault,"  he  would  say  to  himself,  "  prevail  among  my 
pupils?  If  so,  how  extensively?  It  is  comparatively  of 
little  consequence  to  punish  the  particular  transgression. 
The  great  point  is,  to  devise  some  plan  to  reach  the  whole 
evil,  and  to  correct  it,  if  possible. 

In  one  case,  where  such  a  circumstance  occurred,  the 
teacher  managed  it  most  successfully,  in  the  following 
way. 

He  said  nothing  to  the  boy,  and  in  fact,  the  boy  did 
not  know  that  he  was  overheard.  He  allowed  a  day  or 
two  to  elapse,  so  that  the  conversation  might  be  forgotten, 
and  then  took  an  opportunity,  one  day,  after  school,  when 
all  things  had  gone  on  pleasantly,  and  the  school  was 
about  to  be  closed,  to  bring  forward  the  whole  subject. 
He  told  the  boys  that  he  had  something  to  say  to  them, 
after  they  had  laid  by  their  books,  and  were  ready  to  go. 
The  desks  were  soon  closed,  and  every  face  in  the  room 
was  turned  towards  the  master,  with  a  look  of  fixed  atten- 
tion. It  was  almost  evening.  The  sun  had  gone  down. 
The  boys'  labors  were  over.  The  day  was  done,  and  their 
minds  were  at  rest,  and  every  thing  was  favorable  for  mak- 
ing a  deep  and  permanent  impression. 

"  A  few  days  ago,"  says  the  teacher,  when  all  was  still, 
"  I  accidentally  overheard  some  conversation  between  two 
of  the  boys  of  this  school,  and  one  of  them  swore." 

There  was  a  pause. 

"  Perhaps  you  expect  that  I  am  now  going  to  call  the 
boy  out,  and  punish  him.  Is  that  what  I  ought  to  do?  " 

There  was  no  answer. 

"I  think  a  boy  who  uses  bad  language  of  any  kind, 
does  what  he  knows  is  wrong.  He  breaks  God's  com- 
mands. He  does  what  he  knows  would  be  displeasing  to 


108  MORAL    DISCIPLINE. 

his  parents,  and  he  sets  a  bad  example.  He  does  wrong, 
therefore,  and  justly  deserves  punishment." 

There  were,  of  course,  many  boys,  who  felt  that  they 
were  in  danger.  Every  one,  who  had  used  profane  lan- 
guage, was  aware  that  he  might  be  the  one,  who  had  been 
overheard,  and,  of  course,  all  were  deeply  interested  in 
what  the  teacher  was  saying. 

"  He  might,  I  say,"  continued  the  teacher,  "  justly  be 
punished,  but  I  am  not  going  to  punish  him;  for  if  I 
should,  I  am  afraid  that  it  would  only  make  him  a  little 
more  careful  hereafter,  not  to  commit  this  sin  when  I  could 

fossibly  be  within  hearing,  instead  of  persuading  him,  as 
wish  to,  to  avoid  such  a  sin,  in  future,  altogether.  I  am 
satisfied  that  that  boy  would  be  far  happier,  even  in  this 
world,  if  he  would  make  it  a  principle  always  to  do  his 
duty,  and  never,  in  any  case,  to  do  wrong.  And  then  when 
I  think  how  soon  he,  and  all  of  us  will  be  in  another  world, 
where  we  shall  all  be  judged  for  what  we  do  here,  I  feel 
strongly  desirous  of  persuading  him  to  abandon  entirely 
this  practice.  I  am  afraid  that  punishing  him  now,  would 
not  do  that." 

"Besides,"  continues  the  teacher,  "  I  think  it  very 
probable  that  there  are  many  other  boys  in  this  school, 
who  are  sometimes  guilty  of  this  fault,  and  I  have  thought 
that  it  would  be  a  great  deal  better  and  happier  for  us  all, 
if,  instead  of  punishing  this  particular  boy,  whom  I  have 
accidentally  overheard,  and  who  probably  is  not  more  to 
blame  than  many  other  boys  in  school,  I  should  bring  up 
the  whole  subject,  and  endeavor  to  persuade  all  to  re- 
form." 

I  am  aware  that  there  are,  unfortunately,  in  our  coun- 
try, a  great  many  teachers,  from  whose  lips,  such  an  ap- 
peal as  this,  would  be  wholly  in  vain.  The  man  who  is 
accustomed  to  scold,  and  storm,  and  punish,  with  unspar- 
ing severity,  every  transgression,  under  the  influence  of 
irritation  and  anger,  must  not  expect  that  he  can  win  over 
his  pupils  to  confidence  in  him,  and  to  the  principles  of 
duty,  by  a  word.  But  such  an  appeal  will  not  be  lost, 
when  it  comes  from  a  man,  whose  daily  and  habitual  man- 
agement corresponds  with  it.  But  to  return  to  the  story. 


MORAL    DISCIPLINE.  109 

The  teacher  made  some  farther  remarks,  explaining  the 
nature  of  the  sin,  not  in  the  language  of  execration,  and 
affected  abhorrence,  but  calmly,  temperately,  and  without 
any  disposition  to  make  the  worst  of  the  occurrence  which 
had  taken  place.  In  concluding  what  he  said,  he  addres- 
sed the  boys  as  follows: 

"  Now  boys,  the  question  is,  do  you  wish  to  abandon 
this  habit,  or  not;  if  you  do,  all  is  well.  I  shall  immedi- 
ately forget  all  the  past,  and  will  do  all  I  can  to  help  you 
resist  and  overcome  temptation  in  future.  But  all  I  can 
do,  is,  only  to  help  you;  and  the  first  thing  to  be  done,  if 
you  wish  to  engage  in  this  work  of  reform,  is,  to  acknow- 
ledge your  fault ;  and  I  should  like  to  know  how  many  are 
willing  to  do  this." 

"  I  wish  all  those  who  are  willing  to  tell  me  whether  they 
use  profane  language,  would  rise." 

Every  individual  but  one,  rose. 

"  I  am  very  glad  to  see  so  large  a  number,"  said  the 
teacher;  "  and  I  hope  you  will  find  that  the  work  of  con- 
fessing and  forsaking  your  faults,  is,  on  the  whole,  pleas- 
ant, not  painful  business.  Now  those  who  can  truly  and 
honestly  say,  that  they  never  do  use  profane  language,  of 
any  kind,  may  take  their  seats." 

Three  only,  of  the  whole  number,  which  consisted  of 
not  far  from  20,  sat  down.  It  was  in  a  sea-port  town, 
where  the  temptation  to  yield  to  this  vice  is  even  greater, 
than  would  be,  in  the  interior  of  our  country,  supposed 
possible. 

"  Those  who  are  now  standing,"  pursued  the  teacher, 
"  admit  that  they  do,  sometimes  at  least,  commit  this  sin 
I  suppose  all,  however,  are  determined  to  reform ;  for  I  do 
not  know  what  else  should  induce  you  to  rise  and  acknow- 
ledge it  here,  unless  it  is  a  desire,  hereafter  to  break 
yourselves  of  the  habit.  But  do  you  suppose  that  it  will 
be  enough  for  you  merely  to  resolve  here,  that  you  will 
reform  ? 

"  No  sir,"  said  the  boys. 

£  *  Why  ?  If  you  now  sincerely  determine  never  more 
to  use  a  profane  word,  will  you  not  easily  avoid  it?  " 

The  boys  were  silent.     Some  said  faintly,  "  No  sir.*' 
10 


110  MORAL    DISCIPLINE. 

"  It  will  not  be  easy  for  you  to  avoid  the  sin  hereafter," 
continued  the  teacher.  f  c  even  if  you  do  now,  sincerely  and 
resolutely,  determine  to  do  so.  You  have  formed  the  habit 
of  sin,  and  the  habit  will  not  be  easily  overcome.  But  I 
have  detained  you  long  enough  now.  I  will  try  to  devise 
some  method,  by  which  you  may  carry  your  plan  into  effect, 
and  to-morrow  I  will  tell  you  what  it  is." 

So  they  were  dismissed  for  the  day.  The  pleasant  coun- 
tenance and  cheerful  tone  of  the  teacher  conveying  to  them 
the  impression,  that  they  were  engaging  in  the  common  ef- 
fort to  accomplish  a  most  desirable  purpose,  in  which  they 
were  to  receive  the  teacher's  help;  not  that  he  was  pursu- 
ing them,  with  threatening  and  punishment,  into  the  forbid- 
den practice  into  which  they  had  wickedly  strayed.  Great 
caution  is  however,  in  such  a  case,  necessary,  to  guard 
against  the  danger,  that  the  teacher,  in  attempting  to  avoid 
the  tones  of  irritation  and  anger,  should  so  speak  of  the  sin, 
as  to  blunt  their  sense  of  its  guilt,  and  lull  their  conscien- 
ces into  a  slumber. 

At  the  appointed  time,  on  the  following  day,  the  subject 
was  again  brought  before  the  school,  and  some  plans  pro- 
posed, by  which  the  resolutions  now  formed,  might  be  more 
certainly  kept.  These  plans  were  readily  and  cheerfully 
adopted  by  the  boys,  and  in  a  short  time,  the  vice  of  pro- 
faneness  was,  in  a  great  degree,  banished  from  the  school. 
This  whole  account  is  substantially  fact. 

I  hope  the  reader  will  keep  in  mind  the  object  of  the 
above  illustration,  which  is  to  show,  that  it  is  the  true 
policy  of  the  teacher,  not  to  waste  his  time  and  strength, 
in  contending  against  such  accidental  instances  of  trans- 
gression, as  may  chance  to  fall  under  his  notice,  but  to 
take  an  enlarged  and  extended  view  of  the  whole  ground, 
endeavoring  to  remove  whole  classes  of  faults, — to  elevate 
and  improve  multitudes,  together. 

By  these  means,  his  labors  will  not  only  be  more  ef- 
fectual, but  far  more  pleasant.  You  cannot  come  into 
collision  with  an  individual  scholar,  to  punish  him  for  a 
mischievous  spirit,  or  even  to  rebuke  him  for  some  single 
act,  by  which  he  has  given  you  trouble,  without  an  un- 
comfortable and  uneasy  feeling,  which  makes,  in  ordinary 


MORAL    DISCIPLINE.  Ill 

cases,  the  discipline  of  a  school,  the  most  unpleasant  part 
of  a  teacher's  duty.  But  you  can  plan  a  campaign  against 
a  whole  class  of  faults,  and  put  into  operation  a  system 
of  measures  to  correct  them,  and  watch  from  day  to  day 
the  operation  of  that  system,  with  all  the  spirit  and  inter- 
est of  a  game.  It  is  in  fact  a  game,  where  your  ingenuity 
and  moral  power  are  brought  into  the  field,  in  opposition 
to  the  evil  tendencies  of  the  hearts  which  are  under  your 
influence.  You  will  notice  the  success  or  the  failure  of 
the  means  you  may  put  into  operation,  with  all  the  interest 
with  which  the  experimental  philosopher  observes  the  curi- 
ous processes  he  guides;  though  your  interest  maybe  much 
purer  and  higher;  for  he  works  upon  matter,  but  you  are 
experimenting  upon  mind. 

Remember  then,  as,  for  the  first  time  you  take  your  new 
station,  that  it  is  not  your  duty,  simply  to  watch  with  an 
eagle  eye  for  those  accidental  instances  of  transgression, 
which  may  chance  to  fall  under  your  notice ;  you  are  to 
look  over  the  whole  ground;  you  are  to  make  yourself 
acquainted,  as  soon  as  possible,  with  the  classes  of  char- 
acter, and  classes  of  faults,  which  may  prevail  in  your  do- 
minions, and  to  form  deliberate  and  well  digested  plans,  for 
improving  the  one  and  correcting  the  other. 

And  this  is  to  be  the  course  pursued,  not  only  with  great 
delinquencies,  such  as  those  to  which  I  have  already  allud- 
ed, but  to  every  little  transgression  against  the  rules  of 
order  and  propriety.  You  can  correct  them  far  more  easily 
and  pleasantly  in  the  mass,  than  in  detail. 

To  illustrate  this  principle  by  another  case.  A  teacher, 
who  takes  the  course  I  am  condemning,  approaches  the 
seat  of  one  of  his  pupils,  and  asks  to  see  one  of  his  books. 
As  the  boy  opens  his  desk,  the  teacher  observes  that  it  is 
in  complete  disorder.  Books,  maps,  papers,  playthings, 
are  there  in  promiscuous  confusion;  and  from  the  impulse 
of  the  moment,  the  displeased  teacher  pours  out  upon  the 
poor  boy  a  torrent  of  reproach. 

"  What  a  looking  desk!  Why,  John!  I  am  really 
ashamed  of  you.  Look,"  continues  he,  holding  up  the 
lid,  so  that  the  boys  in  the  neighborhood  can  look  in; 
"  see  what  a  mass  of  disorder  and  confusion.  If  ever  I 


112  MORAL    DISCIPLINE. 

see  your  desk  in  such  a  state  again,  I  shall  most  certainly 
punish  you." 

The  boys  around  laugh;  very  equivocally,  however,  for 
with  the  feeling  of  amusement,  there  is  mingled  the  fear 
that  the  angry  master  may  take  it  into  his  head  to  inspect 
their  dominions.  The  boy  accidentally  exposed,  looks 
sullen,  and  begins  to  throw  his  books  into  some  sort  of  ar- 
rangement, just  enough  to  shield  himself  from  the  charge 
of  absolutely  disobeying,  and  there  the  matter  ends. 

Another  teacher  takes  no  apparent  notice  of  the  con- 
fusion he  thus  accidentally  witnesses.  £C  I  must  take  up," 
thinks  he  to  himself,  "the  subject  of  order,  before  the 
whole  school.  I  have  not  yet  spoken  of  it."  He  thanks 
the  boy  for  the  book  he  borrowed,  and  goes  away.  He 
makes  a  memorandum  of  the  subject,  and  the  boy  does 
not  know  that  the  condition  of  his  desk  was  noticed;  per- 
haps he  does  not  even  know  that  there  was  any  thing 
amiss. 

A  day  or  two  after,  at  a  time  regularly  appropriated  to 
such  subjects,  he  addresses  the  boys  as  follows: 

"  In  our  efforts  to  improve  the  school  as  much  as  pos- 
sible, there  is  one  subject,  which  we  must  not  forget.  I 
mean  the  order  of  the  desks." 

The  boys  all  begin  to  open  their  desk  lids. 

"  You  may  stop  a  moment,"  says  the  teacher.  {f  I  shall 
give  you  all  an  opportunity  to  examine  your  desks  pre- 
sently." 

"  I  do  not  know  what  the  condition  of  your  desks  is. 
I  have  not  examined  them,  and  have  not,  in  fact,  seen  the 
inside  of  more  than  one  or  two.  As  I  have  not  brought 
up  this  subject  before,  I  presume  that  there  are  a  great 
many,  which  can  be  arranged  better  than  they  are.  Will 
you  all  now  look  into  your  desks,  and  see  whether  you 
consider  them  in  good  order.  Stop  a  moment  however. 
Let  me  tell  you  what  good  order  is.  All  those  things 
which  are  alike,  should  be  arranged  together.  Books 
should  be  in  one  place,  papers  in  another,  and  thus  every 
thing  should  be  classified.  Again,  every  thing  should  be 
so  placed,  that  it  can  be  taken  out  without  disturbing  other 
things.  There  is  another  principle  also,  which  I  will  men- 


MORAL    DISCIPLINE.  113 

tion,  the  various  articles  should  have  constant  places, — 
that  is,  they  should  not  be  changed  from  day  to  day.  By 
this  means,  you  soon  remember  where  every  thing  belongs, 
and  you  can  put  away  your  things  much  more  easily 
every  night,  than  if  you  had  every  night  to  arrange  them 
in  a  new  way.  Now  will  you  look  into  your  desks,  and  tell 
me  whether  they  are,  on  these  three  principles,  well  ar- 
ranged.'5 

The  boys  of  most  schools,  where  this  subject  had  not 
been  regularly  attended  to,  would  nearly  all  answer  in  the 
negative. 

' '  I  will  allow  you  then,  some  time  to-day,  fifteen  min- 
utes to  arrange  them,  and  I  hope  you  will  try  to  keep  them 
in  good  order  hereafter.  A  few  days  hence,  I  shall  ex- 
amine them.  If  any  of  you  wish  for  assistance  or  advice 
from  me,  in  putting  them  in  order,  I  shall  be  happy  to 
render  it." 

By  such  a  plan,  which  will  occupy  but  little  more  time 
than  the  irritating  and  useless  scolding,  which  I  supposed 
in  the  other  case,  how  much  more  will  be  accomplished. 
Such  an  address  would,  of  itself,  probably,  be  the  means  of 
putting  in  order,  and  keeping  in  order,  at  least  one  half; 
and  following  up  the  plan  in  the  same  manner,  and  in  the 
same  spirit,  with  which  it  was  begun,  would  secure  the 
rest. 

I  repeat  it,  therefore,  make  it  a  principle  in  all  cases, 
to  aim  as  much  as  possible  at  the  correction  of  those 
faults  which  are  likely  to  be  general,  by  general  mea- 
sures. You  avoid  by  this  means,  a  vast  amount  of  irrita- 
tion and  impatience,  both  on  your  own  part,  and  on  the 
part  of  your  scholars,  and  you  produce  at  least  twenty 
times  the  useful  effect. 

3.  The  next  principle  which  occurs  to  me,  as  deserv- 
ing the  teacher's  attention  in  the  outset  of  his  course,  is 
this: 

Interest  your  scholars  in  doing  something  themselves  to 
elevate  the  moral  character  of  the  school,  so  as  to  secure 
a  decided  majority,  who  will,  of  their  own  accord,  co-operate 
with  you. 

Let  your  pupils  understand,  not  by  any  formal  speech 


114  MORAL    DISCIPLINE. 

you  make  to  that  effect,  but  by  the  manner  in  which,  from 
time  to  time,  you  incidentally  allude  to  the  subject,  that 
you  consider  the  school,  when  you  commence  it,  as  at  par, 
so  to  speak, — that  is,  on  a  level  with  other  schools,  and  that 
your  various  plans  for  improving  and  amending  it,  are  not 
to  be  considered  in  the  light  of  finding  fault,  and  punishing 
transgressions,  and  controlling  evil  propensities,  so  as  just 
to  keep  things  in  a  tolerable  state;  but  as  efforts  to  improve 
and  carry  forward,  to  a  state  of  excellence  not  yet  attain- 
ed, all  the  affairs  of  the  institution.  Such  is  the  tone  and 
manner  of  some  teachers,  that  they  never  appear  to  be 
more  than  merely  satisfied.  When  the  scholars  do  right, 
nothing  is  said  about  it.  The  teacher  seems  to  consider 
that  a  matter  of  course.  It  does  not  appear  to  interest 
or  please  him  at  all.  Nothing  arouses  him,  but  when 
they  do  wrong,  and  that  only  excites  him  to  anger  and 
frowns.  Now,  in  such  a  case,  there  can  of  course  be  no 
stimulus  to  effort  on  the  part  of  the  pupils,  but  the  cold 
and  heartless  stimulus  of  fear. 

Now,  it  is  wrong  for  the  teacher  to  expect  that  things 
will  go  right  in  his  school,  as  a  matter  of  course.  All  that 
he  can  expect,  as  a  matter  of  course,  is,  that  things  should 
go  on  as  well  as  they  do  ordinarily  in  schools, — the  ordi- 
nary amount  of  idleness, — the  ordinary  amount  of  miscon- 
duct. This  is  the  most  that  he  can  expect  to  come  as  a 
matter  of  course;  he  should  feel  this, and  then,  all  he  can 
gain  which  will  be  better  than  this,  will  be  a  source  of  posi- 
tive pleasure;  a  pleasure  which  his  pupils  have  procured 
for  him,  and  which  consequently  they  should  share.  They 
should  understand  that  the  teacher  is  engaged  in  various 
plans  for  improving  the  school,  in  which  they  should  be 
invited  to  engage,  not  from  the  selfish  desire  of  thereby 
saving  him  trouble,  but  because  it  will  really  be  happy  em- 
ployment for  them  to  engage  in  such  an  enterprise,  and 
because,  by  such  efforts,  their  own  moral  powers  will  be 
exerted  and  strengthened  in  the  best  possible  way. 

In  another  chapter,  I  have  explained  to  what  extent, 
and  in  what  manner,  the  assistance  of  the  pupils  may  be 
usefully  and  successfully  employed,  in  carrying  forward  the 
general  arrangements  of  the  school.  The  same  princi- 


MORAL   DISCIPLINE.  115 

pies  will  apply  here,  though  perhaps  a  little  more  careful 
and  delicate  management  is  necessary,  in  interesting  them 
in  subjects  which  relate  to  moral  discipline. 

One  important  method  of  doing  this,  is,  to  present  these 
plans  before  the  minds  of  the  scholars,  as  experiments, — 
moral  experiments,  whose  commencement,  progress,  and 
results,  they  may  take  a  great  interest  in  witnessing.  Let 
us  take,  for  example,  the  case  alluded  to  under  the  last 
head, — the  plan  of  effecting  a  reform  in  regard  to  keep- 
ing desks  in  order.  Suppose  the  teacher  were  to  say, 
when  the  time  had  arrived,  at  which  he  had  promised  to 
give  them  an  opportunity  to  put  them  in  order, 

"  I  think  it  would  be  a  good  plan  to  keep  some  account 
of  our  efforts  for  improving  the  school  in  this  respect.  We 
might  make  a  record  of  what  we  do  to-day,  noting  the  day 
of  the  month,  and  the  number  of  desks  which  may  be  found 
to  be  disorderly.  Then  at  the  end  of  any  time  you  may 
propose,  we  will  have  the  desks  examined  again,  and  see 
how  many  are  disorderly.  We  can  then  see  how  much  im- 
povement  has  been  made,  in  that  time.  Should  you  like 
to  adopt  the  plan?  " 

If  the  boys  should  appear  not  much  interested  in  the 
proposal,  the  teacher  might,  at  his  own  discretion,  wave  it. 
In  all  probability,  however,  they  would  like  it,  and  would 
indicate  their  interest  by  their  countenances,  or  perhaps 
by  a  response.  If  so,  the  teacher  might  proceed. 

"  You  may  all  examine  your  desks  then,  and  decide 
whether  they  are  in  order,  or  not.  I  do  not  know,  how- 
ever, but  that  we  ought  to  appoint  a  committee  to  examine 
them;  for  perhaps  all  the  boys  would  not  be  honest,  and 
report  their  desks  as  they  really  are." 

11  Yes  sir;"  "  Yes  sir;"  say  the  boys. 

"Do  you  mean  that  you  will  be  honest,  or  that  you 
would  like  to  have  a  committee  appointed?  " 

There  was  a  confused  murmur.  Some  answer  one,  and 
some  the  other. 

"I  think,"  proceeds  the  teacher,  "the  boys  will  be 
honest,  and  report  their  desks  just  as  they  are.  At  any 
rate,  the  number  of  dishonest  boys  in  this  school,  cannot 
be  so  large  as  materially  to  affect  the  result.  I  think  we 


116  MORAL    DISCIPLINE. 

had  better  take  your  own  statements.  As  soon  as  the 
desks  are  all  examined,  those  who  have  found  theirs  in  a 
condition  which  does  not  satisfy  them,  are  requested  to 
rise  and  be  counted." 

The  teacher  then  looks  around  the  room,  and  selecting 
some  intelligent  boy  who  has  influence  among  his  com- 
panions, and  whose  influence  he  is  particularly  desirous 
of  enlisting  on  the  side 'of  good  order,  says,  "Shall  I  nomi- 
nate some  one  to  keep  an  account  of  this  plan?  " 

"  Yes  sir,"  say  the  boys. 

61  Well,  I  nominate  William  Jones.  How  many  are  in 
favor  of  requesting  William  Jones  to  perform  this  duty? " 

"  It  is  a  vote.  William,  I  will  thank  you  to  write  upon 
a  piece  of  paper,  that  on  the  8th  of  December,  the  sub- 
ject of  order  in  the  desks  was  brought  up,  and  that  the 
boys  resolved  on  making  an  effort  to  improve  the  school 
in  this  respect.  Then  say,  that  the  boys  reported  all  their 
desks  which  they  thought  were  disorderly,  and  that  the 
number  was  35 ;  and  that  after  a  week  or  two,  the  desks 
are  to  be  examined  again,  and  the  disorderly  ones  count- 
ed, that  we  may  see  how  much  we  have  improved.  Aftei 
you  have  written  it,  you  may  bring  it  to  me,  and  I  will 
tell  you  whether  it  is  right." 

"  How  many  desks  do  you  think  will  be  found  to  be 
disorderly,  when  we  come  to  make  the  examination?  " 

The  boys  hesitate. 

The  teacher  names  successively  several  numbers,  and 
asks,  whether  they  think  the  real  number  will  be  greater 
or  less.  He  notices  their  votes  upon  them,  and  at  last 
fixes  upon  one,  which  seems  to  be  about  the  general  sense 
of  the  school.  Then  the  teacher  himself  mentions  the 
number,  which  he  supposes  will  be  found  to  be  disorderly. 
His  estimate  will  ordinarily  be  larger  than  that  of  the 
scholars;  because  he  knows  better  how  easily  resolutions 
are  broken.  This  number  too,  is  recorded,  and  then  the 
whole  subject  is  dismissed. 

Now,  of  course,  no  reader  of  these  remarks,  will  un- 
derstand me  to  be  recommending,  by  this  imaginary  dia- 
logue, (for  the  whole  of  it  is  imaginary,)  a  particular 
course  to  be  taken  in  regard  to  this  subject,  far  less  the 


MORAL    DISCIPLINE.  117 

particular  language  to  be  used.  All  I  mean  is,  to  show 
by  a  familiar  illustration,  how  the  teacher  is  to  endeavor 
to  enlist  the  interest,  and  to  excite  the  curiosity  of  his 
pupils,  in  his  plans  for  the  improvement  of  his  school,  by 
presenting  them  as  moral  experiments,  which  they  are  to 
assist  him  in  trying, — experiments,  whose  progress  they 
are  to  watch,  and  whose  results  they  are  to  predict.  If 
the  precise  steps  which  I  have  described,  should  actually 
be  taken,  although  it  would  occupy  but  a  few  minutes,  and 
would  cause  no  thought,  and  no  perplexing  care,  yet  it 
would  undoubtedly  be  the  means  of  awakening  a  very 
general  interest  in  the  subject  of  order,  throughout  the 
school.  All  would  be  interested  in  the  work  of  arrange- 
ment. 

All  would  watch,  too,  with  interest,  the  progress  and 
the  result  of  the  experiment;  and  if,  a  few  days  after,  the 
teacher  should  accidentally,  in  recess,  see  a  disorderly 
desk,  a  pleasant  remark,  made  with  a  smile,  to  the  by- 
standers, "  I  suspect  my  prediction  will  turn  out  the 
correct  one,"  would  have  far  more  effect,  than  the  most 
severe  reproaches,  or  the  tingling  of  a  rap  over  the 
knuckles  with  a  rattan. 

I  know,  from  experience,  that  scholars  of  every  kind, 
can  be  led,  by  such  measures  as  these,  or  rather  by  such 
a  spirit  as  this,  to  take  an  active  interest,  and  to  exert  a 
most  powerful  influence,  in  regard  to  the  whole  condition 
of  the  institution.  I  have  seen  the  experiment  successful 
in  boys*  schools,  and  in  girls'  schools;  among  very  little 
children,  and  among  the  seniors  and  juniors  at  college. 

In  one  of  the  colleges  of  New  England,  a  new  and 
beautiful  edifice  was  erected.  The  lecture  rooms  were 
fitted  up  in  handsome  style,  and  the  officers,  when  the 
time  for  the  occupation  of  the  building  approached,  were 
anticipating  with  regret,  what  seemed  to  be  the  unavoid- 
able defacing,  and  cutting,  and  marking  of  the  seats  and 
walls.  It  was  however  thought,  that  if  the  subject  was 
properly  presented  to  the  students,  they  would  take  an 
interest  in  preserving  the  property  from  injury.  They 
were  accordingly  addressed  somewhat  as  follows: 

f  It  seems,  young  gentlemen,  to  be  generally  the  cus- 


118  MORAL    DISCIPLINE. 

torn  in  colleges,  for  the  students  to  ornament  the  walls 
and  benches  of  their  recitation  rooms,  with  various  inscrip- 
tions and  carricatures,  so  that  after  the  premises  have  been 
for  a  short  time  in  the  possession  of  a  class,  every  thing 
within  reach,  which  will  take  an  impression  from  a  pen- 
knife, or  a  trace  from  a  pencil,  is  covered  with  names,  and 
dates,  and  heads,  and  inscriptions  of  every  kind.  The 
faculty  do  not  know  what  you  wish  in  this  respect,  in  re- 
gard to  the  new  accommodations  which  the  Trustees  have 
now  provided  for  you,  and  which  you  are  soon  to  enter. 
They  have  had  them  fitted  up  for  you  handsomely,  and 
if  you  wish  to  have  them  kept  in  good  order,  we  will  as- 
sist you.  If  the  students  think  proper  to  express  by  a 
vote,  or  in  any  other  way,  their  wish  to  keep  them  in 
good  order,  we  will  engage  to  have  such  incidental  inju- 
ries, as  may  from  time  to  time  occur,  immediately  repair- 
ed. Such  injuries  will,  of  course,  be  done;  for  whatever 
may  be  the  wish  and  general  opinion  of  the  whole,  it  is 
not  to  be  expected  that  every  individual,  in  so  large  a  com- 
munity, will  be  careful.  If,  however,  as  a  body,  you  wish 
to  have  the  building  preserved  in  its  present  state,  and 
will,  as  a  body,  take  the  necessary  precautions,  we  will  do 
our  part." 

The  students  responded  to  this  appeal  most  heartily. 
They  passed  a  vote,  expressing  a  desire  to  preserve  the 
premises  in  order,  and  for  many  years,  and  for  ought  I 
know,  to  the  present  hour,  the  whole  is  kept  as  a  room 
occupied  by  gentlemen  should  be  kept.  At  some  other 
colleges,  and  those,  too,  sustaining  the  very  highest  rank 
among  the  institutions  of  the  country,  the  doors  of  the 
public  buildings  are  sometimes  studded  with  nails,  as  thick 
as  they  can  possibly  be  driven,  and  then  covered  with  a  thick 
coat  of  sand,  dried  into  the  paint,  as  a  protection  from  the 
knives  of  the  students!! 

The  particular  methods,  by  which  the  teacher  is  to  in- 
terest his  pupils  in  his  various  plans  for  their  improvement, 
cannot  be  very  fully  described  here.  In  fact,  it  does  not 
depend  so  much  on  the  methods  he  adopts,  as  upon  the 
view  which  he  himself  takes  of  these  plans,  and  the  tone 
and  manner  in  which  he  speaks  of  them  to  his  pupils. 


MORAL    DISCIPLINE.  119 

A  teacher,  for  example,  perhaps  on  the  first  day  of  his 
labors  in  a  new  school,  calls  a  class  to  read.  They  pre- 
tend to  form  a  line,  but  it  crooks  in  every  direction.  One 
boy  is  leaning  hack  against  a  desk;  another  comes  forward 
as  far  as  possible,  to  get  near  the  fire;  the  rest  lounge  in 
every  position  and  in  every  attitude.  John  is  holding  up 
his  book  high  before  his  face,  to  conceal  an  apple,  from 
which  he  is  endeavoring  to  secure  an  enormous  bite. 
James  is  by  the  same  sagacious  device,  concealing  a 
whisper,  which  he  is  addressing  to  his  next  neighbor,  and 
Moses  is  seeking  amusement  by  crowding  and  elbowing 
the  little  boy  who  is  unluckily  standing  next  him. 

"  What  a  spectacle!  "  says  the  master  to  himself,  as  he 
looks  at  this  sad  display.  "  What  shall  I  do?  "  The  first 
impulse  is,  to  break  forth  upon  them  at  once,  with  all  the 
artillery  of  reproof,  and  threatening,  and  punishment.  I 
have  seen,  in  such  a  case,  a  scolding  and  frowning  master 
walk  up  and  down  before  such  a  class,  with  a  stern  and 
angry  air,  commanding  this  one  to  stand  back,  and  that  to 
come  forward,  ordering  one  boy  to  put  down  his  book,  and 
scolding  at  a  second  for  having  lost  his  place,  and  knock- 
ing the  knees  of  another  with  his  rule,  because  he  was  out 
of  the  line.  The  boys  scowl  at  their  teacher,  and,  with 
ill-natured  reluctance,  they  otbey,  just  enough  to  escape 
punishment. 

Another  teacher  looks  calmly  at  the  scene,  and  says  to 
himself,  "What  shall  I  do  to  remove  effectually  these 
evils?  If  I  can  but  interest  the  boys  in  reform,  it  will  be 
far  more  easy  to  effect  it,  than  if  I  attempt  to  accomplish 
it  by  the  mere  exercise  of 'my  authority." 

In  the  meantime,  things  go  on,  during  the  reading,  in 
their  own  way.  The  teacher  simply  observes.  He  is  in 
no  haste  to  commence  his  operations.  He  looks  for  the 
faults;  watches,  without  seeming  to  watch,  the  movements 
which  he  is  attempting  to  control.  He  studies  the  materi- 
als with  which  he  is  to  work,  and  lets  their  true  character 
develope  itself.  He  tries  to  find  something  to  approve  in 
the  exercise,  as  it  proceeds,  and  endeavors  to  interest  the 
class,  by  narrating  some  fact,  connected  with  the  reading, 
or  making  some  explanation  which  interests  the  boys.  At 


120  MORAL   DISCIPLINE. 

the  end  of  the  exercise,  he  addresses  them,  perhaps,  as 
follows : 

"  I  have  observed,  boys,  in  some  military  companies, 
that  the  officers  are  very  strict,  requiring  implicit  and  pre- 
cise obedience.  The  men  are  required  to  form  a  precise 
line."  (Here  there  is  a  sort  of  involuntary  movement  all 
along  the  line,  by  which,  it  is  very  sensibly  straightened.) 
"  They  make  all  the  men  stand  erect,"  (At  this  word, 
heads  go  up,  and  straggling  feet  draw  in,  all  along  the 
class,)  "  in  the  true  military  posture.  They  allow  nothing 
to  be  done  in  the  ranks,  but  to  attend  to  the  exercise," 
(John  hastily  crowds  his  apple  into  his  pocket,)  "  and  thus 
they  regulate  every  thing;  in  exact  and  steady  discipline, 
so  that  all  things  go  on  in  a  most  systematic  and  scientific 
manner.  This  discipline  is  so  admirable  in  some  coun- 
tries, especially  in  Europe,  where  much  greater  attention 
is  paid  to  military  tactics  than  in  our  country,  that  I  have 
heard  it  said  by  travellers,  that  some  of  the  soldiers  who 
mount  guard  at  public  places,  look  as  much  like  statues, 
as  they  do  like  living  men. 

sc  Other  commanders  act  differently.  They  let  the  men 
do  pretty  much  as  they  please.  So  you  will  see  such  a 
company  lounging  into  a  line,  when  the  drum  beats,  as  if 
they  took  little  interest  in  what  was  going  on.  While  the 
captain  is  giving  his  commands,  one  is  eating  his  luncheon; 
another  is  talking  with  his  next  neighbor.  Part  are  out 
of  the  line ;  part  lounge  on  one  foot ;  they  hold  their  guns 
in  every  position;  and  on  the  whole,  present  a  very  disor- 
derly and  unsoldier-like  appearance. 

ec  I  have  observed,  too,  that  boys  very  generally  prefer 
to  see  the  strict  companies,  but  perhaps  they  would  prefer 
to  belong  to  the  lax  ones." 

"  No  sir;  "  "  No  sir;  "  say  the  boys. 

(l  Suppose  you  all  had  your  choice,  either  to  belong  to  a 
company  like  the  first  one  I  described,  where  the  captain 
was  strict  in  all  his  requirements,  or  to  one  like  the  latter, 
where  you  could  do  pretty  much  as  you  pleased,  which 
should  you  prefer?  " 

Unless  I  am  entirely  mistaken  in  my  idea  of  the  incli- 
nations of  boys,  it  would  be  very  difficult  to  get  a  single 


MORAL    DISCIPLINE.  121 

honest   expression   of  preference   for  the   latter.     They 
would  say  with  one  voice, 
"  The  first." 

"  I  suppose  it  would  be  so.  You  would  be  put  to  some 
inconvenience  by  the  strict  commands  of  the  captain,  but 
then  you  would  be  more  than  paid  by  the  beauty  of  reg- 
ularity and  order,  which  you  would  all  witness.  There  is 
nothing  so  pleasant  as  regularity,  and  nobody  likes  reg- 
ularity more  than  boys  do.  To  show  this,  I  should  like 
to  have  you  now  form  a  line  as  exact  as  you  can." 

After  some  unnecessary  shoving  and  pushing,  increased 
by  the  disorderly  conduct  of  a  few  bad  boys,  a  line  is  form- 
ed. Most  of  the  class  are  pleased  with  the  experiment, 
and  the  teacher  takes  no  notice  of  the  few  exceptions. 
The  time  to  attend  to  them,  will  come  by  and  by. 

'  Hands  down."     The  boys  obey. 

c  Shoulders  back." 

c  There; — there  is  a  very  perfect  line." 

c  Do  you  stand  easily  in  that  position? " 

cYes  sir." 

f  I  believe  your  position  is  the  military  one,  now,  pretty 
nearly;  and  military  men  study  the  postures  of  the  human 
body,  for  the  sake  of  finding  the  one  most  easy;  for  they 
wish  to  preserve  as  much  as  possible  of  the  soldiers' 
strength,  for  the  time  of  battle.  I  should  like  to  try  the 
experiment  of  your  standing  thus,  at  the  next  lesson.  It 
is  a  very  great  improvement  upon  your  common  mode. 
Are  you  willing  to  do  it?  " 
"  Yes  sir;  "  say  the  boys. 

"  You  will  get  tired,  I  have  no  doubt.  In  fact,  I  do 
not  expect  you  will  succeed,  the  first  day,  very  well. 
You  will  probably  become  restless  and  uneasy,  before  the 
end  of  the  lesson,  especially  the  smaller  boys.  I  must 
excuse  it,  I  suppose,  if  you  do,  as  it  will  be  the  first  time." 
By  such  methods  as  these,  the  teacher  will  certainly 
secure  a  majority  in  favor  of  all  his  plans.  But  perhaps 
some  experienced  teacher,  who  knows  from  his  own  re- 
peated difficulties  with  bad  boys,  what  sort  of  spirits  the 
teacher  of  district  schools  has  sometimes  to  deal  with, 
may  ask,  as  he  reads  this, 

11 


122 


MORAL    DISCIPLINE. 


"  Do  you  expect  that  such  a  method  as  this,  will  suc- 
ceed in  keeping  your  school  in  order?  Why,  there  are 
boys  in  almost  every  school,  whom  you  would  no  more 
coax  into  obedience  and  order  in  this  way,  than  you  would 
persuade  the  northeast  wind  to  change  its  course  by  rea- 
soning." 

I  know  there  are.  And  my  readers  are  requested  to 
bear  in  mind,  that  my  object  is  not  now  to  show,  how  the 
whole  government  of  the  school  may  be  secured,  but  how 
one  important  advantage  may  be  gained,  which  will  assist 
in  accomplishing  the  object.  All  I  should  expect  or  hope 
for,  by  such  measures  as  these,  is  to  interest  and  gain  over 
to  our  side,  the  majority.  What  is  to  be  done  with  those 
who  cannot  be  reached  by  such  kinds  of  influence,  I  shall 
endeavor  presently  to  show.  The  object  now  is,  simply 
to  gain  the  majority, — to  awaken  a  general  interest,  which 
you  can  make  effectual  in  promoting  your  plans,  and  thus 
to  narrow  the  field  of  discipline,  by  getting  those  right, 
who  can  be  got  right  by  such  measures. 

Thus  securing  a  majority  to  be  on  your  side  in  the  gen- 
eral administration  of  the  school,  is  absolutely  indispensa- 
ble to  success.  A  teacher  may,  by  the  force  of  mere  au- 
thority, so  control  his  pupils,  as  to  preserve  order  in  the 
school-room,  and  secure  a  tolerable  progress  in  study,  but 
the  heart  will  not  be  in  it.  The  progress  in  knowledge 
must  accordingly  be,  in  ordinary  cases,  slow,  and  the 
cultivation  of  moral  principle  must  be,  in  such  a  case, 
entirely  neglected.  The  principles  of  duty  cannot  be 
inculcated  by  fear;  and  though  pain  and  terror  must,  in 
many  instances,  be  called  in  to  coerce  an  individual  of- 
fender, whom  milder  measures  will  not  reach,  yet  these 
agents,  and  others  like  them,  can  never  be  successfully 
employed,  as  the  ordinary  motives  to  action.  They  can- 
not produce  any  thing  but  mere  external  and  heartless 
obedience  in  the  presence  of  the  teacher,  with  an  inclina- 
tion to  throw  off  all  restraint,  when  the  pressure  of  stern 
authority  is  removed, 

We  should  all  remember  that  our  pupils  are,  but  a  very 
short  time,  under  our  direct  control.  Even  when  they  are 
in  school,  the  most  untiring  vigilance  will  not  enable  us 


MORAL    DISCIPLINE.  123 

to  watch,  except  for  a  very  small  portion  of  the  time,  any 
individual.  Many  hours  of  the  day,  too,  they  are  entirely 
removed  from  our  inspection,  and  a  few  months  will  take 
them  away  from  us  altogether.  Subjecting  them  then  to 
mere  external  restraint,  is  a  very  inadequate  remedy  for 
the  moral  evil,  to  which  they  are  exposed.  What  we  aim 
at,  is  to  bring  forward  and  strengthen  an  internal  princi- 
ple, which  will  act,  when  both  parent  and  teacher  are  away, 
and  control  where  external  circumstances  are  all  unfavor- 
able. 

I  have  thus  far  under  this  head,  been  endeavoring  to 
show  the  importance  of  securing,  by  gentle  measures,  a 
majority  of  the  scholars,  to  co-operate  with  the  teacher  in 
his  plans.  The  methods  of  doing  this,  demand  a  little 
attention. 

(1.)  The  teacher  should  study  human  nature  as  it  ex- 
hibits itself  in  the  school-room,  by  taking  an  interest  in  the 
sports  and  enjoyments  of  the  pupils,  and  connecting,  as 
much  as  possible,  what  is  interesting  and  agreeable,  with 
the  pursuits  of  the  school,  so  as  to  lead  the  scholars  to  like 
the  place.  An  attachment  to  the  institution  and  to  the 
duties  of  it,  will  give  the  teacher  a  very  strong  hold  upon 
the  community  of  mind  which  exists  there. 

(2.)  Every  thing  which  is  unpleasant  in  the  discipline 
of  the  school  should  be  attended  to,  as  far  as  possible, 
privately.  Sometimes  it  is  necessary  to  bring  a  case  for- 
ward in  public,  for  reproof  or  punishment,  but  this  is  sel- 
dom. In  some  schools,  it  is  the  custom  to  postpone  cases 
of  discipline,  till  the  close  of  the  day,  and  then,  just  be- 
fore the  boys  are  dismissed  at  night,  all  the  difficulties  are 
settled.  Thus,  day  after  day,  the  impression  which  is  last 
made  upon  their  minds,  is  received  from  a  season  of  suf- 
fering, and  terror,  and  tears. 

Now  such  a  practice  may  be  attended  with  many  ad- 
vantages, but  it  seems  to  be,  on  the  whole,  unwise.  Aw- 
ing the  pupils,  by  showing  them  the  consequences  of  do- 
ing wrong,  should  be  very  seldom  resorted  to.  It  is  far 
better  to  allure  them,  by  showing  them  the  pleasures  of 
doing  right.  Doing  right  is  pleasant  to  every  body,  and 
no  persons  are  so  easily  convinced  of  this,  or  rather  so 


124  MORAL    DISCIPLINE 

easily  led  to  see  it,  as  children.  Now  the  true  policy  is, 
to  let  them  experience  the  pleasure  of  doing  their  duty, 
and  they  will  easily  be  allured  to  it. 

In  many  cases,  where  a  fault  has  been  publicly  commit- 
ted, it  seems,  at  first  view,  to  be  necessary  that  it  should  be 
publicly  punished;  but  the  end  will,  in  most  cases,  be  an- 
swered, if  it  is  noticed  publicly,  so  that  the  pupils  may 
know  that  it  received  attention,  and  then  the  ultimate  dis- 
posal of  the  case,  may  be  made  a  private  affair,  between 
the  teacher  and  the  individual  concerned.  If,  however, 
every  case  of  disobedience,  or  idleness,  or  disorder,  is 
brought  out  publicly  before  the  school,  so  that  all  witness 
the  teacher's  displeasure,  and  feel  the  effects  of  it,  (for  to 
witness  it,  is  to  feel  its  most  unpleasant  effects,)  the- school 
becomes,  in  a  short  time,  hardened  to  such  scenes.  Un- 
pleasant associations  become  connected  with  the  manage- 
ment of  the  school,  and  the  scholars  are  prepared  to  do 
wrong  with  less  reluctance,  since  the  consequence  is  only 
a  repetition  of  what  they  are  obliged  to  see  every  day. 

Besides,  if  a  boy  does  something  wrong,  and  you  severe- 
ly reprove  him  in  the  presence  of  his  class,  you  punish  the 
class,  almost  as  much  as  you  do  him.  In  fact,  in  many 
cases,  you  punish  them  more;  for  I  believe  it  is  almost 
invariably  more  unpleasant  for  a  good  boy  to  stand  by  and 
listen  to  rebukes,  than  for  a  bad  boy  to  take  them.  Keep 
these  things,  therefore,  as  much  as  possible,  out  of  sight. 
Never  bring  forward  cases  of  discipline,  except  on  mature 
deliberation,  and  for  a  distinct  and  well-defined  purpose. 

(3.)  Never  bring  forward  a  case  of  discipline  of  this 
kind,  unless  you  are  sure  that  public  opinion  will  go  in 
your  favor.  If  a  case  comes  up,  in  which  the  sympathy 
of  the  scholars  is  excited  for  the  criminal,  in  such  a  way 
as  to  be  against  yourself,  it  will  always  do  more  harm  than 
good.  Now  this,  unless  there  is  great  caution,  will  often 
be  the  case.  In  fact,  it  is  probable  that  a  very  large  pro- 
portion of  the  punishments  which  are  ordinarily  inflicted 
in  schools,  only  prepare  the  way  for  more  offences. 

It  is,  however,  possible  to  bring  forward  individual  cases 
in  such  a  way,  as  to  produce  a  very  strong  moral  effect, 
of  the  right  kind.  This  is  to  be  done  by  seizing  upon 


MORAL    DISCIPLINE.  125 

those  peculiar  emergencies,  which  will  arise  in  the  course 
of  the  administration  of  a  school,  and  which  each  teacher 
must  watch  for,  and  discover  himself.  They  cannot  be 
pointed  out.  I  may,  however,  give  a  clearer  idea  of  what 
is  meant,  by  such  emergencies,  by  an  example.  It  is  a 
case  which  actually  occurred,  as  here  narrated. 

In  a  school  where  nearly  all  the  pupils  were  faithful 
and  docile,  there  were  one  or  two  boys,  who  were  deter- 
mined to  find  amusement  in  those  mischievous  tricks,  so 
common  in  schools  and  colleges.  There  was  one  boy  in 
particular,  who  was  the  life  and  soul  of  all  these  plans. 
Devoid  of  principle,  idle  as  a  scholar,  morose  and  sullen 
in  his  manners,  he  was,  in  every  respect,  a  true  specimen 
of  the  whole  class  of  mischief-makers,  wherever  they  are 
to  be  found.  His  mischief  consisted,  as  usual,  in  such 
exploits  as  stopping  up  the  keyhole,  upsetting  the  teach- 
er's inkstand,  or  fixing  something  to  his  desk  to  make  a 
noise,  and  interrupt  the  school. 

It  so  happened,  that  there  was  a  standing  feud  between 
the  boys  of  his  neighborhood,  and  those  of  another,  situ- 
ated a  mile  or  two  from  it.  By  his  malicious  activity,  he 
had  stimulated  this  quarrel  to  a  high  pitch,  and  was  very 
obnoxious  to  the  boys  of  the  other  party.  One  day,  when 
taking  a  walk,  the  teacher  observed  a  number  of  boys  with 
excited  looks,  and  armed  with  sticks  and  stones,  standing 
around  a  shoe-maker's  shop,  to  which  his  poor  pupil  had 
gone  for  refuge  from  them.  They  had  got  him  completely 
within  their  power,  and  were  going  to  wait  until  he  should 
be  wearied  with  his  confinement,  and  come  out,  when  they 
were  going  to  inflict  upon  him  the  punishment  they  thought 
he  deserved. 

The  teacher  interfered,  and  by  the  united  influence  of 
authority,  management,  and  persuasion,  succeeded  in  ef- 
fecting a  rescue.  The  boy  would  probably  have  preferred 
to  owe  his  safety  to  any  one  else,  than  to  the  teacher,  whom 
he  had  so  often  tried  to  tease ;  but  he  was  glad  to  escape 
in  any  way.  The  teacher  said  nothing  about  the  subject, 
and  the  boy  soon  supposed  it  was  entirely  forgotten. 

But  it  was  not  forgotten.  The  teacher  knew  perfectly 
well  that  the  boy  would,  before  long,  be  at  his  old  tricks 


126  MORAL   DISCIPLINE. 

again,  and  was  reserving  this  story  as  the  means  of  turn- 
ing the  whole  current  of  public  opinion  against  such  tricks 
should  they  again  occur. 

One  day  he  came  to  school,  in  the  afternoon,  and  found 
the  room  filled  with  smoke;  the  doors  and  windows  were 
all  closed,  though,  as  soon  as  he  came  in,  some  of  the  boys 
opened  them.  He  knew  by  this  circumstance,  that  it  was 
roguery,  not  accident,  which  caused  the  smoke.  He 
appeared  not  to  notice  it,  however,  said  he  was  sorry  it- 
smoked,  and  asked  the  mischievous  boy,  for  he  was  sure 
to  be  always  near  in  such  a  case,  to  help  him  fix  the  fire. 
The  boy  supposed  it  was  understood  to  be  accidental,  and 
perhaps  secretly  laughed  at  the  dulness  of  his  master. 

In  the  course  of  the  afternoon,  the  teacher  ascertained, 
by  private  inquiries,  that  his  suspicions  were  correct,  as  to 
the  author  of  the  mischief.  At  the  close  of  school,  when 
the  studies  were  ended,  and  the  books  laid  away,  he  told 
the  scholars  that  he  wanted  to  tell  them  a  story. 

He  then,  with  a  pleasant  tone  and  manner,  gave  a  veiy 
minute,  and,  to  the  boys,  a  very  interesting  narrative  of 
his  adventure,  two  or  three  weeks  before,  when  he  rescued 
this  boy  from  his  danger.  He  called  him,  however,  simply 
a  boy,  without  mentioning  his  name,  or  even  hinting  that 
he  was  a  member  of  the  school.  No  narrative  could  excite 
a  stronger  interest  among  an  audience  of  school-boys,  than 
such  an  one  as  this;  and  no  act  of  kindness  from  a  teacher, 
would  make  as  vivid  an  impression,  as  interfering  to  rescue 
a  trembling  captive,  from  such  a  situation  as  the  one  this 
boy  had  been  in. 

The  scholars  listened  with  profound  interest  and  atten- 
tion, and  though  the  teacher  said  little  about  his  share  in 
the  affair,  and  spoke  of  what  he  did,  as  if  it  were  a  matter 
of  course,  that  he  should  thus  befriend  a  boy  in  distress, 
an  impression,  very  favorable  to  himself,  must  have  been 
made.  After  he  had  finished  his  narrative,  he  said, 

"  Now  should  you  like  to  know  who  this  boy  was?" 

"  Yes  sir;"  "•  Yes  sir;"  said  they,  eagerly. 

"  It  was  a  boy  that  you  all  know." 

The  boys  looked  around  upon  one  another.  Who 
could  it  be  ? 


MORAL   DISCIPLINE  l£7 

"  He  is  a  member  of  this  school." 

There  was  an  expression  of  fixed,  and  eager,  and  in- 
creasing interest,  on  every  face  in  the  room. 

"  He  is  here  now,"  said  the  teacher,  winding  up  the 
interest  and  curiosity  of  the  scholars,  by  these  words,  to 
the  highest  pitch. 

"  But  I  cannot  tell  you  his  name;  for  what  return  do 
you  think  he  made  to  me?  To  be  sure  it  was  no  very 
great  favor  that  I  did  him;  I  should  have  been  unworthy 
the  name  of  teacher,  if  I  had  not  done  it  for  him,  or  for 
any  boy  in  my  school.  But  at  any  rate,  it  showed  my 
good  wishes  for  him, — it  showed  that  I  was  his  friend, 
and  what  return  do  you  think  he  made  me  for  it?  Why, 
to-day  he  spent  his  time  between  schools  in  filling  the 
room  with  smoke,  that  he  might  torment  his  companions 
here,  and  give  me  trouble,  and  anxiety  and  suffering, 
when  I  should  come.  If  I  should  tell  you  his  name,  the 
whole  school  would  turn  against  him  for  his  ingratitude." 

The  business  ended  here,  and  it  put  a  stop,  a  final  stop 
to  all  malicious  tricks  in  the  school.  iSow  it  is  not 
very  often  that  so  fine  an  opportunity  occurs,  to  kill,  by  a 
single  blow,  the  disposition  to  do  wilful,  wanton  injury, 
as  this  circumstance  afforded ;  but  the  principle  illustrat- 
ed by  it, — bringing  forward  individual  cases  of  trans- 
gression, in  a  public  manner,  only  for  the  sake  of  the 
general  effect,  and  so  arranging  what  is  said  and  done 
as  to  produce  the  desired  effect  upon  the  public  mind,  in 
the  highest  degree,  may  very  frequently  be  acted  upon. 
Cases  are  continually  occurring,  and  if  the  teacher  will 
keep  it  constantly  in  mind,  that  when  a  particular  case 
comes  before  the  whole  school,  the  object  is  an  influence 
upon  the  whole,  and  not  the  punishment  or  reform  of  the 
guilty  individual,  he  will  insensibly  so  shape  his  meas- 
ures, as  to  produce  the  desired  result. 

(4.)  There  should  be  a  great  difference  made  between 
the  measures  you  take  to  prevent  wrong,  and  the  feelings 
of  displeasure  against  wrong,  when  it  is  done.  The  for- 
mer should  be  strict,  authoritative,  unbending;  the  latter 
should  be  mild  and  gentle.  Your  measures,  if  uniform 
and  systematic  will  never  give  offence,  however  powerful- 


128  MORAL    DISCIPLINE 

ly  you  may  restrain  and  control.  It  is  the  morose  look 
the  harsh  expression,  the  tone  of  irritation  and  fretfulness, 
which  is  so  unpopular  in  school.  The  sins  of  childhood 
are  by  nine  tenths  of  mankind  enormously  overrated,  and 
perhaps  none  overrate  them,  more  extravagantly,  than 
teachers.  We  confound  the  trouble  they  give  us,  with 
their  real  moral  turpitude,  and  measure  the  one  by  the 
other.  Now  if  a  fault  prevails  in  school,  one  teacher  will 
scold  and  fret  himself  about  it,  day  after  day,  until  his 
scholars  are  tired  both  of  school  and  of  him:  and  yet  he 
will  do  nothing  effectual  to  remove  it.  Another  will  take 
efficient  and  decided  measures,  and  yet  say  very  little  on 
the  subject,  arid  the  whole  evil  will  be  removed,  without 
suspending  for  a  moment,  the  good  humor,  and  pleasant 
feeling,  which  should  prevail  in  school. 

The  expression  of  your  displeasure  on  account  of  any 
thing  that  is  wrong,  will  seldom  or  never  do  any  good.  The 
scholars  consider  it  scolding;  it  is  scolding,  and  though  it 
may,  in  many  cases,  contain  many  sound  arguments  and 
eloquent  expostulations,  it  operates  simply  as  a  punishment. 
It  is  unpleasant  to  hear  it.  General  instruction  must  in- 
deed be  given,  but  not  general  reproof. 

(5.)  Feel  that,  in  the  management  of  the  school,  you  are 
under  obligation  as  well  as  the  scholars,  and  let  this  feel- 
ing appear  in  all  that  you  do.  Your  scholars  wish  you  to 
dismiss  school  earlier  than  usual  on  some  particular  occa- 
sion, or  to  allow  them  an  extra  holiday.  Show  by  the 
manner  in  which  you  consider  and  speak  of  the  question, 
that  your  main  inquiry  is  what  is  your  duty.  Speak  often 
of  your  responsibility  to  your  employers,  not  formally,  but 
incidentally  and  naturally  as  you  will  speak,  if  you  feel 
this  responsibility. 

It  will  assist  very  much  too,  in  securing  cheerful,  good- 
humored  obedience  to  the  regulations  of  the  school,  if  you 
extend  their  authority  over  yourself.  Not  that  the  teach- 
er is  to  have  no  liberty  from  which  the  scholars  are  de- 
barred; this  would  be  impossible.  But  the  teacher  should 
submit,  himself,  to  every  thing  which  he  requires  of  his 
scholars,  unless  it  is  in  cases  where  a  different  course  is 
necessary. 


MORAL    DISCIPLINE.  129 

Suppose  for  instance,  a  study  card,  like  the  one  describ- 
ed in  a  preceding  chapter,  is  made,  so  as  to  mark  the  time 
of  recess  and  of  study.  The  teacher  near  the  close  of  re- 
cess, is  sitting  with  a  group  of  his  pupils  around  him,  tell- 
ing them  some  story.  They  are  all  interested,  and  they 
aee  he  is  interested.  He  looks  at  his  watch,  and  shows  by 
his  manner,  that  he. is  desirous  of  finishing  what  he  is  say- 
ing, but  that  he  knows  that  the  striking  of  the  bell  will  cut 
short  his  story.  Perhaps  he  says  not  a  word  about  it,  but 
his  pupils  see  that  he  is  submitting  to  the  control  which  is 
placed  over  them:  and  when  the  card  goes  up,  and  he  stops 
instantly  in  the  middle  of  his  sentence,  and  rises  with  the 
rest,  each  one  to  go  to  his  own  place,  to  engage  at  once 
in  their  several  duties,  he  teaches  them  a  most  important 
lesson,  and  in  the  most  effectual  way.  Such  a  lesson  of 
fidelity  and  obedience,  and  such  an  example  of  it,  will  have 
more  influence,  than  a  half  hour's  scolding  about  whisper- 
ing without  leave,  or  a  dozen  public  punishments.  At  least 
so  I  find  it,  for  I  have  tried  both. 

Show  then  continually,  that  you  see  and  enjoy  the  beau- 
ty of  system  and  strict  discipline,  and  that  you  submit  to  it 
yourself,  as  well  as  require  it  of  others. 

(6.)  Lead  your  pupils  to  see  that  they  must  share  with 
you,  the  credit  or  the  disgrace,  which  success  or  failure 
may  bring.  Lead  them  to  feel  this,  not  by  telling  them  so, 
for  there  are  very  few  things  which  can  be  impressed  upon 
children  by  direct  efforts  to  impress  them;  but  by  so  speak- 
ing of  the  subject,  from  time  to  time,  as  to  lead  them  to 
see  that  you  understand  it  so. 

Repeat,  with  judicious  caution,  what  is  said  of  the  school, 
both  for  and  against  it,  and  thus  endeavor  to  interest  the 
scholars  in  its  public  reputation.  This  feeling  of  interest 
in  the  institution  may  very  easily  be  awakened.  It  some- 
times springs  up,  spontaneously,  and  where  it  is  not  guid- 
ed  aright  by  the  teacher,  sometimes  produces  very  bad 
effects  upon  the  minds  of  the  pupils,  in  rival  institutions. 
When  two  schools  are  situated  near  each  other,  evil  con- 
quences  will  result  from  this  feeling,  unless  the  teacher 
manages  it  so  as  to  deduce  good  consequences.  I  recol- 
lect, that,  in  my  boyish  days,  there  was  a  standing  quarrel 


130  MORAL    DISCIPLINE. 

between  the  boys  of  a  town  school  and  an  acadamy,  which 
were  in  the  same  village.  We  were  all  ready,  at  any 
time,  when  out  of  school,  to  fight  for  the  honor  of  our 
respective  institutions,  but  very  tew  were  ready  to  be  dili- 
gent and  faithful,  when  in  it,  though  it  would  seem  that 
that  might  have  been  rather  a  more  effectual  means  of  es- 
tablishing the  point.  If  the  scholars  are  led  to  understand 
that  the  school  is  to  a  great  extent  their  institution,  that 
they  must  assist  to  sustain  its  character,  and  that  they 
share  the  honor  if  any  honor  is  acquired,  a  feeling  will 
prevail  in  the  school,  which  may  be  turned  to  a  most  use- 
ful account. 

(7.)  In  giving  instruction  on  moral  duty,  the  subject 
should  be  taken  up  generally,  in  reference  to  imaginary 
cases,  or  cases  which  are  unknown  to  most  of  the  schol- 
ars. If  this  is  done,  the  pupils  feel  that  the  object  of 
bringing  up  the  subject  is  to  do  good;  whereas,  if  questions 
of  moral  duty  are  only  brought  up,  from  time  to  time,  when 
some  prevailing  or  accidental  fault  in  school  calls  for  it, 
the  feeling  will  be  that  the  teacher  is  only  endeavoring  to 
remove  from  his  own  path  a  source  of  inconvenience  and 
trouble.  The  most  successful  mode  of  giving  general 
moral  instruction  that  I  have  known,  and  which  has  been 
adopted  in  many  schools,  with  occasional  variations  of 
form,  is  the  following. 

When  the  time  has  arrived  a  subject  is  assigned,  and 
small  papers  are  distributed  to  the  whole  school,  that  all 
may  write  something  concerning  it.  These  are  then  read 
and  commented  on  by  the  teacher,  and  are  made  the  oc- 
casion of  any  remarks,  which  he  may  wish  to  make.  The 
interest  is  strongly  excited  to  hear  the  papers  read,  and 
the  instruction  which  the  teacher  may  give,  produces  a 
deeper  effect,  when  engrafted  thus,  upon  something  which 
originates  in  the  minds  of  the  pupils. 

To  take  a  particular  case ;  a  teacher  addressed  his  schol- 
ars thus.  "  The  subject  for  the  moral  exercise  to  day,  is 
Prejudice.  Each  one  may  take  one  of  the  papers  which 
have  been  distributed,  and  you  may  write  upon  them  any 
thing  you  please  relating  to  the  subject.  As  many  as 
have  thought  of  any  4hing  to  write,  may  raise  their  hands. 


MORAL    DISCIPLINE.  131 

One  or  two  only  of  the  older  scholars  gave  the  signal. 

cc  I  will  mention  the  kinds  of  communications  you  can 
make,  and  perhaps  what  I  say  will  suggest  something  to 
you.  As  fast  as  you  think  of  any  thing,  you  may  raise 
your  hands,  and  as  soon  as  I  see  a  sufficient  number  up, 
I  will  give  directions  to  begin.  You  can  describe  any 
case  in  which  you  have  been  prejudiced,  yourselves,  either 
against  persons  or  things." 

Here  a  number  of  the  hands  went  up. 

"  You  can  mention  any  facts  relating  to  antipathies  of 
any  kind,  or  any  cases  where  you  know  other  persons  to 
be  prejudiced.  You  can  ask  any  questions  in  regard  to 
the  subject,  questions  about  the  nature  of  prejudice,  or  the 
causes  of  it,  or  the  remedy  for  it." 

As  he  said  this,  many  hands  were  successively  raised, 
and  at  last,  directions  were  given  for  them  to  begin  to 
write.  Five  minutes  were  allowed,  and  at  the  end  of  that 
time  the  papers  were  collected  and  read.  The  following 
specimens,  transcribed  verbatim  from  the  originals,  with 
the  remarks  made,  as  nearly  as  they  could  be  remember- 
ed immediately  after  the  exercise,  will  give  an  idea  of  the 
ordinary  operation  of  this  plan. 

"  I  am  very  much  prejudiced  against  spiders,  and  every  insect  in 
the  known  world,  with  scarcely  an  exception.  There  is  a  horrid 
sensation  created  by  their  ugly  forms,  that  makes  me  wish  them  all 
to  Jericho.  The  butterfly's  wings  are  pretty,  but  he  is  dreadful  ugly. 
There  is  no  affectation  in  this,  for  my  pride  will  not  permit  me  to 
show  this  prejudice  to  any  great  degree,  when  1  can  help  it.  I  do 
not  fear  the  little  wretches ;  but  I  do  hate  them. 

Anti-  Spider-  Sparer. ' ' 

<c  This  is  not  expressed  very  well,  the  phrases,  "  to  Jer- 
icho "  and  "  dreadful  ugly,"  are  vulgar,  and  in  very  bad 
taste.  Such  a  dislike  too  is  more  commonly  called  an  an- 
tipathy, than  a  prejudice,  though  perhaps  it  comes  under 
the  general  head  of  prejudices." 

"How  may  we  overcome  prejudice?  I  think  that  when  we  are 
prejudiced  against  a  person,  it  is  the  hardest  thing  in  the  world  to 
overcome  it." 

"  A  prejudice  is  usually  founded  on  some  unpleasant  as- 


132  MORAL   DISCIPLINE. 

sociation  connected  with  the  subject  of  it.  The  best  way 
to  overcome  the  prejudice,  therefore,  is  to  connect  some 
pleasant  association  with  it. 

"  For  example,  (to  take  the  case  of  the  antipathy  to  the 
spider,  alluded  to  in  the  last  article,)  the  reason  why  that 
young  lady  dislikes  spiders,  is  undoubtedly  because  she  has 
some  unpleasant  idea  associated  with  the  thought  of  that 
animal,  perhaps  for  example,  the  idea  of  their  crawling  up- 
on her — which  is  certainly  not  a  very  pleasant  one  for  any 
body.  Now  the  way  to  correct  such  a  prejudice,  is  to  try 
to  connect  some  pleasant  thoughts  with  the  sight  of  the 
animal. 

<c  I  once  found  a  spider  in  an  empty  apartment,  hanging 
in  its  web  on  the  wall,  with  a  large  ball  of  ^ggs  which  it 
had  suspended  by  its  side.  My  companion  and  myself 
cautiously  brought  up  a  tumbler  under  the  web,  and  press- 
ed it  suddenly  against  the  wall,  so  as  to  enclose  both  spi- 
der and  eggs  within  it.  We  then,  contrived  to  run  in  a 
pair  of  shears,  so  as  to  cut  off  the  web,  and  let  both  the 
animal  and  its  treasure  fall  down  into  the  tumbler.  We 
put  a  book  over  the  top,  and  walked  off  with  our  prize,  to 
a  table,  to  see  what  it  would  do. 

"  At  first  it  tried  to  climb  up  the  side  of  the  tumbler, 
but  its  feet  slipped,  from  the  smooth  glass.  We  then  in- 
clined the  glass,  so  as  to  favor  its  climbing  and  to  enable 
it  to  reach  the  book  at  the  top.  As  soon  as  it  touched 
the  book,  it  was  safe.  It  could  cling  to  the  book  easily, 
and  we  placed  the  tumbler  again  upright,  to  watch  its 
motions. 

"  It  attached  a  thread  to  the  book  and  let  itself  down  by 
it  to  the  bottom  of  the  tumbler,  and  walked  round  and  round 
the  ball  of  eggs,  apparently  in  great  trouble.  Presently 
it  ascended  by  its  thread,  and  then  came  down  again.  It 
attached  a  new  thread  to  the  ball,  and  then  went  up,  draw- 
ing the  ball  with  it.  It  hung  the  ball  at  a  proper  distance 
from  the  book, 'and  bound  it  firmly  in  its  place  by  threads 
funning  from  it,  in  every  direction,  to  the  parts  of  the  book 
which  were  near,  and  then  the  animal  took  its  place,  quiet- 
ly by  its  side. 

"  Now  I  do  not  say,  that  if  any  body  had  a  strong  an- 


MORAL    DISCIPLINE.  133 

tipathy  to  a  spider,  seeing  one  perform  such  a  work  as  this 
would  entirely  remove  it;  but  it  would  certainly  soften  it. 
It  would  tend  to  remove  it.  It  would  connect  an  interest- 
ing and  pleasant  association,  with  the  object.  So  if  she 
should  watch  a  spider  in  the  fields  making  his  web.  You 
have  all  seen  those  beautiful,  regular  webs,  in  the  morn- 
ing dew,  ("  Yes,  sir,"  "  Yes  sir.")  composed  of  concen- 
tric circles,  and  radii  diverging  in  every  direction.  ("Yes 
sir.")  Well,  watch  a  spider  when  making  one  of  these, 
or  observe  his  artful  ingenuity  and  vigilance,  when  he  is 
lying  in  wait  for  a  fly.  By  thus  connecting  pleasant  ideas, 
with  the  sight  of  the  animal,  you  will  destroy  the  unpleas- 
ant association  which  constitutes  the  prejudice.  In  the 
same  manner,  if  I  wished  to  create  an  antipathy  to  a  spi- 
der, in  a  child,  it  would  be  very  easily  done.  I  would  tie 
her  hands  behind  her,  and  put  three  or  four  upon  her,  to 
crawl  over  her  face. 

<c  Thus  you  must  destroy  prejudices  in  all  cases,  by  con- 
necting pleasant  thoughts  and  associations  with  the  objects 
of  them." 

"  I  am  very  often  prejudiced  against  new  scholars,  without  know- 
ing why  ? " 

"  We  sometimes  hear  a  person  talk  in  this  way,  '  I  do 
not  like  such,  or  such  a  person,  at  all.5 ' 

"  'Why  ?' 

"  '  Oh  I  don't  know,  I  do  not  like  her  at  all.  I  can't 
bear  her.' 

"  (  But  why  not.     What  is  your  objection  to  her.' 

"  '  Oh  I  don't  know,  I  have  not  any  particular  reason, 
but  I  never  did  like  her.' 

"  Now  whenever  you  hear  any  person  talk  so,  you  may 
be  sure  that  her  opinion,  on  any  subject,  is  worth  nothing 
at  all.  She  forms  opinions  in  one  case,  without  grounds, 
and  it  depends  merely  upon  accident,  whether  she  does 
not,  in  other  cases." 

"  Why  is  it  that  so  many  of  our  countrymen  are,  or  seem  to  be 
prejudiced  against  the  unfortunate  children  of  Africa  ?  Almost  every 
large  white  boy,  who  meets  a  small  black  boy,  insults  him,  in  some 
way  or  other." 

12 


134  MORAL    DISCIPLINE. 

"It  is  so  hard  to  overcome  prejudices,  that  we  ought  to  be  careful 
how  we  form  them." 

"  When  I  see  a  new  scholar  enter  this  school  and  she  does  not  hap* 
pen  to  suit  me  exactly  in  her  ways  and  manners,  I  very  often  get  pre- 
judiced against  her,  though  sometimes  I  find  her  a  valuable  friend, 
after  I  get  acquainted  with  her." 

"  There  is  an  inquiry  I  should  like  very  much  to  make, 
though  I  suppose  it  would  not  be  quite  right  to  make  it. 
I  should  like  to  ask  all  those  who  have  some  particular 
friend  in  school,  and  who  can  recollect  the  impression 
which  the  individual  made  upon  them  when  they  first  saw 
her,  to  rise,  and  then  I  should  like  to  inquire  in  how  many 
cases  the  first  impression  was  favorable,  and  in  how  many 
unfavorable." 

"Yes  sir."  "  Yes  sir." 

4 '  Do  you  mean  you  would  like  to  have  the  inquiry  made  ? } ' 

"Yes  sir." 

"  All,  then,  who  have  intimate  friends,  and  can  recol- 
.ect  the  impression  which  they  first  made  upon  them,  may 
rise." 

[About  thirty  rose;  more  than  two  thirds  of  whom  voted 
that  the  first  impression  made  by  the  persons  who  had 
since  become  their  particular  friends,  was  unfavorable.] 

"This  shows  how  much  dependence  you  can  justly 
place  on  first  impressions.55 

"  It  was  the  next  Monday  morning,  after  1  had  attained  the  wise 
age  of  4  years,  that  I  was  called  up  into  my  mother's  room,  and  told 
that  1  was  the  next  day  going  to  school. 

"  I  called  forth  all  my  reasoning  powejs,  and  with  all  the  ability 
of  a  child  of  four  years,  I  reasoned  with  my  mother,  but  to  no  pur- 
pose. I  told  her  that  I  hated  the  school-mistress  then;  though  I  had 
never  seen  her.  The  very  first  day  I  tottered  under  the  weight  of  the 
mighty  foolscap.  I  only  attended  her  school  two  quarters;  with  pre- 
judice I  went,  and  with  prejudice  I  came  away. 

"  The  old  school-house  is  now  torn  down,  and  a  large  brick  house 
takes  the  place  of  it.  But  I  never  pass  by  without  remembering  my 
teacher.  I  am  prejudiced  to  [against]  the  very  spot. 

"Is  it  not  right  to  allow  prejudice,  to  have  influence  over  our  minds 
as  far  as  this?  If  any  thing  comes  to  our  knowledge,  with  which  wrong 
seems  to  be  connected,  and  one  in  whom  we  have  always  felt  confi- 
dence is  engaged  in  it,  is  it  not  right  to  allow  our  prejudice  in  favor 


MORAL    DISCIPLINE.  135 

of  tliis  individual  to  have  so  much  influence  over  us,  as  to  cause  us 
to  believe  that  all  is  really  right,  though  every  circumstance  which 
has  come  to  our  knowledge  is  against  such  a  conclusion?  I  felt  this 
influence  not  many  weeks  since,  in  a  very  great  degree." 

"  No;  it  would  not  be  prejudice  in  such  a  case.  That 
is,  a  prejudice  Avould  not  be  a  sufficient  ground  to  justify 
withholding  blame.  Well  grounded  confidence  in  such 
a  person,  if  there  was  reason  for  it,  ought  to  leave  such 
an  effect,  but  not  prejudice." 

The  above  may  be  considered  as  a  fair  specimen  of  the 
ordinary  operation  of  su<jh  an  exercise.  It  is  taken  as  an 
illustration,  not  by  selection  from  the  large  number  of  sim- 
ilar exercises  which  I  have  witnessed,  but  simply  because 
it  was  an  exercise  occurring  at  the  time  when  a  description 
was  to  be  written.  Besides  the  articles  quoted  above, 
there  were  thirty  or  forty  others,  which  were  read  and 
commented  on.  The  above  will,  however,  be  sufficient 
to  give  the  reader  a  clear  idea  of  the  exercise,  and  to  show 
what  is  the  nature  of  the  moral  effect  it  is  calculated  to 
produce. 

The  subjects  which  may  be  advantageously  brought  for- 
ward in  such  a  way,  are  of  course  very  numerous.  They 
are  such  as  the  following.  In  connexion  with  each,  give 
the  suggestions  as  to  the  kind  of  articles  to  be  written, 
which  the  pupils  may  receive  at  the  time  the  subject  is 
assigned. 

1.  DUTIES  TO  PARENTS.  Anecdotes  of  good  or  bad  conduct  at 
home.  Questions.  Cases  where  it  is  most  difficult  to  obey.  Dia- 
logues between  parents  and  children.  Excuses  which  are  often  made 
for  disobedience. 

2.  SELFISHNESS.     Cases  of  selfishness  any  of  the  pupils  have  obser- 
ved.    Dialogues  they  have  heard  exhibiting  it.     Questions  about  its 
nature.     Indications  of  selfishness. 

3.  FAULTS  OF  THE  SCHOOL.     Any  bad  practices  the  scholars  may 
have  observed  in  regard  to  general  deportment,  recitations,  habits  of 
study,  or  the  scholars'  treatment  of  one  another.     Each  scholar  may 
write  what  is  his  own   greatest  trouble  in  school,  and  whether  he 
thinks  any  thing  can  be  done  to  remove  it.     Any  thing  they  think 
can  be  improved  in  the  management  of  the  school  by  the  Teacher. 
Unfavorable  things   they  have   heard   said  about  it,  out  of  school, 
though  without  names. 


136  MORAL   DISCIPLINE. 

4.  EXCELLENCES  OF  THE  SCHOOL.     Good  practices,  which  ought 
to  be  persevered  in.     Any  little  incidents  the  scholars  may  have  no- 
ticed illustrating  good  character.    Cases  which  have  occurred  in  which 
scholars  have  done  right,  in  temptation,  or  when  others  around  were 
doing  wrong.     Favorable  reports  in  regard  to  the  school,  in  the  com- 
munity around. 

5.  THE  SABBATH.     Any  thing   the  scholars  may  have  known  to 
be  done  on  the  Sabbath  which  they  doubt  whether  right  or  wrong. 
Questions  in  regard  to  the  subject.     Various  opinions  they  have  heard 
expressed.     Difficulties  they  have  in  regard  to  proper  ways  of  spend- 
ing the  Sabbath. 

(8.)  We  have  one  other  method  to  describe,  by  which  a 
favorable  moral  influence  may  be  exerted  in  school.  The 
method  can,  however,  go  into  full  effect,  only  where  there 
are  several  pupils  who  have  made  considerable  advances 
in  mental  cultivation. 

It  is  to  provide  a  way,  by  which  teachers  and  pupils  may 
write,  anonymously,  for  the  school.  This  may  be  done  by 
having  a  place  of  deposit  for  such  articles  as  ma^  be  writ- 
ten, where  any  person  may  leave  what  he  wishes  to  have 
read,  nominating,  by  a  memorandum,  upon  the  article  it- 
self, the  reader.  If  a  proper  feeling  on  the  subject  of  good 
discipline,  and  the  formation  of  good  character,  prevails  in 
school,  many  articles,  which  will  have  a  great  deal  of  ef- 
fect upon  the  pupils,  will  find  their  way  through  such  an 
avenue,  once  opened.  The  teacher  can  himself  often 
bring  forward,  in  this  way,  his  suggestions,  with  more 
effect  than  he  otherwise  could  do.  Such  a  plan  is,  in  fact, 
like  the  plan  of  a  newspaper  for  an  ordinary  community, 
where  sentiments  and  opinions  stand  on  their  own  basis, 
and  influence  the  community  just  in  proportion  to  their 
intrinsic  merits,  unassisted  by  the  authority  of  the  writer's 
name,  and  unimpeded  by  any  prejudice  which  may  exist 
against  him.  In  my  own  school,  this  practice  has  had  a 
very  powerful  effect.  I  have,  myself,  often  thus  anony- 
mously addressed  my  pupils,  and  I  have  derived  great  as- 
sistance from  communications  which  many  of  the  pupils 
have  written.  Sometimes  we  have  had  full  discussions  of 
proposed  measures,  and  at  others,  criticisms  of  the  man- 
agement of  the  school,  or  of  prevailing  faults.  Sometimes 
good  humored  satires,  and  sometimes  simple  descriptions. 


XJL    \^  — ^  ft     V 

V          OF  THE  " 

[TJNI7EHSIT 

MORAL    DISCIPLINE.  OJr  137 

^^.4<  JU    7*    «•  .m    Vt   \   it*1* 

5T  is  true  the  practice  is  not  steadily  kept  up.  Often,  for 
months  together,  there  is  not  an  article  offered.  Still  the 
place  of  deposit  remains,  and,  after  a  time,  some  striking 
communication  is  made,  which  awakens  general  attention, 
and  calls  out  other  pens,  until  the  fifteen  minutes,  corres- 
ponding to  the  afternoon  General  Exercise,  in  the  plan 
provided  in  a  preceding  chapter,  (which  is  all  which  is 
allowed  to  be  devoted  to  such  purposes,)  is  not  sufficient 
to  read  what  is  daily  offered.  Of  course,  in  such  a  plan 
as  this,  the  teacher  must  have  the  usual  editorial  powers, 
to  comment  upon  what  is  written,  or  to  alter  or  suppress  it 
at  pleasure.* 

*  The  following  articles,  which  were  really  offered  for  such  a  pur- 
pose, will  serve  as  specimens.  One  or  two  were  written  by  teachers. 
I  do  not  know  the  authors  of  the  others.  I  do  not  offer  them  as  re- 
markable compositions  :  every  teacher  will  see  that  they  are  not  so. 
The  design  of  inserting  them  is  merely  to  show  that  the  ordinary 
literary  ability  to  be  found  in  every  school,  may  be  turned  to  useful 
account,  by  simply  opening  a  channel  for  it,  and  to  furnish  such 
teachers  as  may  be  inclined  to  try  the  experiment,  the  means  of  mak- 
ing the  plan  clearly  understood  by  their  pupils. 


MARKS    OF    A    BAD    SCHOLAR. 


"  At  the  time  when  she  should  be  ready  to  take  her  seat  at  school, 
she  commences  preparation  for  leaving  home.  To  the  extreme  annoy- 
ance of  those  about  her,  all  is  now  hurry  and  bustle  and  ill  humor. 
Thorough  search  is  to  be  made  for  every  book  or  paper,  for  which  she 
has  occasion;  some  are  found  in  one  place,  some  in  another,  and 
others  are  forgotten  altogether.  Being  finally  equipped,  she  casts  her 
eye  at  the  clock,  hopes  to  be  in  tolerable  good  season,  (notwithstand- 
ing that  the  hour  for  opening  the  school  has  already  arrived,)  and  sets 
out,  in  the  most  violent  hurry. 

After  so  much  haste,  she  is  unfitted  for  attending  properly  to  the 
duties  of  the  school,  until  a  considerable  time  after  her  arrival.  If 
present  at  the  devotional  exercises,  she  finds  it  difficult  to  command 
her  attention,  even  when  desirous  of  so  doing,  and  her  deportment  at 
this  hour,  is  accordingly  marked  with  an  unbecoming  listlessness  and 
abstraction. 

When  called  to  recitations,  she  recollects  that  some  task  was  as- 
signed, which  till  that  moment,  she  had  forgotten;  of  others  she  had 
mistaken  the  extent,  most  commonly  thinking  them  to  be  shorter  than 
her  companions  suppose.  In  her  answers  to  questions  with  which  she 
should  be  familiar,  she  always  manifests  more  or  less  of  hesitation, 
12* 


138  MORAL   DISCIPLINE. 

By  means  like  these,  it  will  not  be  difficult  for  any 
teacher  to  obtain,  so  far  an  ascendency  over  the  minds 

and  what  she  ventures  to  express,  is  very  commonly  in  the  form  of  a 
question.  In  these,  as  in  all  exercises,  there  is  an  inattention  to 
general  instructions.  Unless  what  is  said  be  addressed  particularly 
to  herself,  her  eyes  are  directed  towards  another  part  of  the  room ;  it 
may  be  her  thoughts  are  employed  about  something  not  at  all  con- 
nected with  the  school.  If  reproved  by  her  teacher,  for  negligence 
in  any  respects,  she  is  generally  provided  with  an  abundance  of  ex- 
cuses, and  however  mild  the  reproof,  she  receives  it  as  a  piece  of 
extreme  severity. 

Throughout  her  whole  deportment,  there  is  an  air  of  indolence,  and 
a  want  of  interest  in  those  exercises  which  should  engage  her  atten- 
tion. In  her  seat,  she  most  commonly  sits  in  some  lazy  posture ; — 
either  with  her  elbows  upon  her  desk,  her  head  leaning  upon  her 
hands,  or  with  her  seat  tipped  forwards  or  backwards.  When  she 
has  occasion  to  leave  her  seat,  it  is  in  a  sauntering,  lingering  gait  ;— 
perhaps  some  trick  is  contrived'on  the  way,  for  exciting  the  mirth  of 
her  companions. 

About  every  thing  in  which  it  is  possible  to  be  so,  she  is  untidy 
Her  books  are  carelessly  used,  and  placed  in  her  desk  without  order. 
If  she  has  a  piece  of  waste  paper  to  dispose  of,  she  finds  it  much 
more  convenient  to  tear  it  into  small  pieces,  and  scatter  it  about  her 
desk,  than  to  put  it  in  a  proper  place.  Her  hands  and  clothes  are 
usually  covered  with  ink.  Her  written,  exercises  are  blotted,  and  full 
of  mistakes." 

THE    CONSEQUENCES    OF    BEING    BEHINDHAND. 

"  The  following  incident,  which  I  witnessed  on  a  late  journey,  il- 
lustrates an  important  principle,  and  I  will  relate  it. 

When  our  steamboat  started  from  the  wharf,  all  our  passengers  had 
not  come.  After  we  had  proceeded  a  few  yards,  there  appeared  among- 
the  crowd  on  the  wharf,  a  man  with  his  trunk  under  his  arm, — out 
of  breath,— and  with  a  most  disappointed  and  disconsolate  air.  The 
Captain  determined  to  stop  for  him,  but  stopping  an  immense  steam- 
boat, moving  swiftly  through  the  water,  is  not  to  be  done  in  a  moment- 
So  we  took  a  grand  sweep,  wheeling  majestically  around  an  Englisl 
ship,  which  was  at  anchor  in  the  harbor.  As  we  came  towards  th>! 
wharf  again,  we  saw  the  man  in  a  small  boat,  coming  off  from  it.  Ae. 
the  steamboat  swept  round,  they  barely  succeeded  in  catching  a  rope 
from  the  stern,  and  then  immediately  the  steam  engine  began  its  work 
again,  and  we  pressed  forward, — the  little  boat  following  us  so  swiftly 
that  the  water  around  her  was  all  in  a  foam. 

They  pulled  upon  the  rope  attached  to  the  little  boat,  until  they 
drew  it  alongside.  They  then  let  down  a  rope  with  a  hook  in  the  end 
of  it,  from  an  iron  crane,  which  projected  over  the  side  of  the  steam 
boat,  and  hooked  it  into  a  staple  in  the  front  of  the  small  boat.  "Hoist 
y;  "  said  the  Captain.  The  sailors  hoisted,  and  the  front  part  oi 


MORAL  DISCIPLINE.  139 

of  his  pupils,  as  to  secure  an  overwhelming  majority  hi 
favor  of  good  order,  and  co-operation  with  him  in  his  plans 

the  little  boat  began  to  rise,  the  stern  still  ploughing  and  foaming 
through  the  water,  and  the  man  still  in  it,  with  his  trunk  under  his 
arm.  They  "  hoisted  away,"  until  I  began  to  think  that  the  poor 
man  would  actually  tumble  out  behind.  He  clung  to  the  seat,  and 
looked  as  though  he  was  saying  to  himself,  "  I  will  take  care  how  I 
am  tardy  the  next  time."  However,  after  awhile,  they  hoisted  up 
the  stern  of  the  boat,  and  he  got  safely  on  board. 

Moral.  Though  coming  to  school  a  few  minutes  earlier  or  later, 
may  not  in  itself  be  a  matter  of  much  consequence,  yet  the  habit  of 
being  five  minutes  too  late,  if  once  formed,  will,  in  actual  life,  be  a 
source  of  great  inconvenience,  and  sometimes  of  lasting  injury.' 

NEW    SCHOLARS. 

tl  There  is,  at «-—,  a  young  ladies'  school,  taught  by  Mr. . 

*«*#*#** 

But  with  all  these  excellences,  there  is  one  fault,  which  I  con- 
sidered a  great  one,  and  which  does  not  comport  with  the  general 
character  of  the  school  for  kindness  and  good  feeling.  It  is  the  little 
effort  made  by  the  scholars  to  become  acquainted  with  the  new  ones 
who  enter.  Whoever  goes  there,  must  push  herself  forward,  or  she 
will  never  feel  at  home.  The  young  ladies  seem  to  forget,  that  the 
new  comer  must  feel  rather  unpleasantly,  in  the  midst  of  a  hundred 
persons,  to  whom  she  is  wholly  a  stranger,  and  with  no  one  to  speak 
to.  Two  or  three  will  stand  together,  and  instead  of  deciding  upon 
some  plan,  by  which  the  individual  may  be  made  to  feel  at  ease,  some- 
thing like  the  following  conversation  takes  place. 

Miss  X.  How  do  you  like  the  .looks  of  Miss  A.,  who  entered  school 
to-day  ? 

Miss  Y.  I  don't  think  she  is  very  pretty,  but  she  looks  as  if  srw» 
might  be  a  good  scholar. 

Miss  X.  She  does  not  strike  me  very  pleasantly  ;  did  you  ever  see 
such  a  face  ?  And  her  complexion  is  so  dark,  I  should  think  she  had 
always  lived  in  the  open  air ;  and  what  a  queer  voice  she  has  ! 

Miss  Y.     I  wonder  if  she  has  a  taste  for  Arithmetic  ? 

Miss  X.  She  does  not  look  as  if  she  had  much  taste  for  any  thing ; 
see,  how  strangely  she  fixes  her  hair. 

Miss  S.  Whether  she  has  much  taste  or  not,  some  one  of  us  ought 
to  go  and  get  acquainted  with  her.  See  how  unpleasantly  she  feels. 

Miss  X.  I  don't  want  to  get  acquainted  with  her,  until  I  know 
whether  I  shall  like  her  or  not. 

Thus  nothing  is  done  to  relieve  her.  When  she  does  become  ao- 
quainted,  all  her  first  strange  appearance  is  forgotten ;  but  this  is 
sometimes  not  the  case  for  several  weeks.  It  depends  entirely  on 
the  character  of  the  individual  herself.  If  she  is  forward,  and  willing 
to  make  the  necessary  effort,  she  can  find  many  friends  •  but  if  she  is 


140  MORAL    DISCIPLINE. 

for  elevating  the  character  of  the  school.  But  let  it  be  dis- 
tinctly understood,  that  this,  and  this  only,  has  been  the 

diffident,  she  has  much  to  suffer.  This  arises  principally  from  thought- 
lessness. The  young  ladies  do  not  seem  to  realize  that  there  is  any 
thing  for  them  to  do.  They  feel  enough  at  home  themselves,  and  the 
remembrance  of  the  time  when  they  entered  school,  does  not  seem  to 
arise  in  their  minds." 

A    SATIRICAL    SPIRIT. 

"  1  witnessed,  a  short  time  since,  a  meeting  between  two  friends, 
who  had  had  but  little  intercourse  before,  for  a  long  while.  I  thought 
a  part  of  their  conversation  might  be  useful,  and  I  shall,  therefore, 
relate  it,  as  nearly  as  I  can  recollect,  leaving  each  individual  to  draw 
her  own  inferences. 

For  some  time,  I  sat  silent  but  not  uninterested,  while  the  days  of 
'  Auld  Lang  Syne  '  came  up  to  the  remembrance  of  the  two  friends. 
After  speaking  of  several  individuals,  who  were  among  their  former 
acquaintances,  one  asked,  '  Do  you  remember  Miss  W.  ?'  '  Yes,' 
replied  the  former,  i  I  remember  her  as  the  fear,  terror,  and  abhor- 
rence of  all  who  knew  her.'  /knew  the  lady  by  report, and  asked 
why  she  was  so  regarded,  the  reply  was,  *  Because  she  was  so  severe, 
so  satirical  in  her  remarks  upon  others.  She  spared  neither  friend  or 
foe.' 

The  friends  resumed  their  conversation.  <  Did  you  know,'  said 
the  one  who  had  first  spoken  of  Miss  W., '  that  she  sometimes  had 
seasons  of  bitter  repentance  for  indulging  in  this  unhappy  propensity 
of  hers  ?  She  would,  at  such  times,  resolve  to  be  more  on  her  guard, 
but  after  all  her  good  resolutions,  she  would  yield  to  the  slightest 
temptations.  When  she  was  expressing,  and  apparently  really  feel' 
ing  sorrow  for  having  wounded  the  feelings  of  others,  those  who 
knew  her,  would  not  venture  to  express  any  sympathy,  for  very  like- 
lv,  the  next  moment,  that  would  be  turned  into  ridicule.  No  confi- 
dence could  be  placed  in  her.' 

A  few  more  facts  will  be  stated  respecting  the  same  individual,  which 
I  believe  are  strictly  true.  Miss  W.  possessed  a  fine  and  well  cul- 
tivated mind,  great  penetration,  and  a  tact  at  discriminating  charac- 
ter, rarely  equalled.  She  could,  if  she  chose,  impart  a  charm  to  her 
conversation,  that  would  interest,and  even  fascinate  those  who  listened 
to  it ;  still  she  was  not  beloved.  Weaknesses  and  foibles  met  with  un- 
merciful severity  ;  and  well-meaning  intentions  and  kind  actions  did 
not  always  escape  without  the  keen  sarcasm,  which  it  is  so  difficult 
for  the  best  regulated  mind  to  bear  unmoved.  The  mild  and  gentle 
seemed  to  shrink  from  her,  and  thus  she,  who  might  have  been  the 
bright  and  beloved  ornament  of  the  circle  in  which  she  moved, 
was  regarded  with  distrust,  fear,  and  even  hatred.  This  dangerous 
habit  of  making  satirical  remarks  was  evinced  in  childhood  ;  it  was 
cherished ;  '  it  grew  with  her  growth  and  strengthened  with  her 
strength,'  until  she  became  what  I  have  described."  LAURA. 


MORAL    DISCIPLINE.  141 

object  of  this  chapter,  thus  far.     The  first  point  brought 
up,  was  the  desirableness  of  making,  at  first,  a  favourable 

Though  such  a  satirical  spirit  is  justly  condemned,  a  little  good- 
humored  raillery  may  sometimes  be  allowed,  as  a  mode  of  attack- 
ing faults  in  school  which  cannot  be  reached  by  graver  methods. 
The  teacher  must  not  be  surprised,  if  some  things  connected  with  his 
own  administration,  come  in,  sometimes,  for  a  share. 


"  I  was  walking  out,  a  few  days  since,  and  not  being  particularly 
in  haste,  I  concluded  to  visit  a  certain  school  for  an  hour  or  two.  In 
a  few  minutes  after  I  had  seated  myself  on  the  sofa,  the  '  Study  CardJ 
was  dropped,  and  the  general  noise  and  confusion,  indicated  that 
recess  had  arrived.  A  line  of  military  characters,  bearing  the  title  of 
the  l  Freedom's  Band,'  was  soon  called  out,  headed  by  one  of  their 
own  number.  The  tune  chosen  to  guide  them  was  Kendall's  march. 

"  *  Please  to  form  a  regular  line,'  said  the  lady  commander.  i  Re- 
member that  there  is  to  be  no  speaking  in  the  ranks.  Do  not  begin 
to  step,  until  I  strike  the  bell.  Miss  B.,  I  requested  you  not  to  step 
until  I  gave  the  signal.' 

"  Presently  the  command  was  given,  and  the  whole  line  stepped, 
for  a  few  minutes,  to  all  intents  and  purposes.  Again  the  bell  soun- 
ded ; — *  Some  of  you  have  lost  the  step,'  said  the  general.  <  Look  at 
me,  and  begin  again.  Left  !  Right !  Left  !  Right !'  The  line  was 
once  more  in  order,  and  I  observed  a  new  army  on  the  opposite  side 
of  the  room,  performing  the  same  manoeuvres,  always  to  the  tune  of 
*  Kendall's  March.'  After  a  time,  the  recess  closed,  and  order  was 
again  restored.  In  about  half  an  hour,  I  approached  a  class,  which 
was  reciting  behind  the  railing.  '  Miss  A.,'  said  a  teacher,  '  how 
many  kinds  of  magnitude  are  there  ?'  Miss  Jl.  ('Answer  inaudible.') 
Several  voices.  '  We  can't  hear.'  Teacher.  *  Will  you  try  to  speak 
a  little  louder,  Miss  A.  ?' 

"  Some  of  the  class  at  length  seemed  to  guess  the  meaning  of  the 
young  lady ;  but  /  was  unable  to  do  even  that,  until  the  answer  was 
repeated  by  the  teacher.  Finding  that  I  should  derive  little  instruction 
from  the  recitation,  I  returned  to  the  sofa. 

"  In  a  short  time  the  propositions  were  read.  *  Proposed  that  the 
committee  be  impeached,  for  not  providing  suitable  pens.'  '  Lost,  a 
pencil,  with  a  piece  of  India-rubber  attached  to  it,  by  a  blue  riband,' 
&c.  &c. 

"  Recess  was  agrain  announced,  and  the  lines  commenced  their  evo- 
lutions to  the  tune  of  l  Kendall's  March.'  Thought  I,  *  Oh  !  that 
there  were  a  new  tune  under  the  sun  i  ' 

"  Before  the  close  of  school,  some  compositions  were  read.  One 
was  entitled  '  The  Magical  .Ring/  and  commenced, l  As  I  was  sitting 
alone  last  evening,  I  heard  a  gentle  tap  on  the  door,  and  immediately 


142  MORAL    DISCIPLINE. 

impression, — the  second,  the  necessity  of  taking  general 
views  of  the  condition  of  the  school,  and  aiming  to  improve 
it  in  the  mass,  and  not  merely  to  rebuke  or  punish  acci- 
dental faults, — and  the  third,  the  importance  and  the  means 
of  gaming  a  general  influence  and  ascendency  over  the 
minds  of  the  pupils.  But,  though  an  overwhelming  ma- 
jority can  be  reached  by  such  methods  as  these,  all  can- 
not. We  must  have  the  majority  secured,  however,  in 
order  to  enable  us  to  reach  and  to  reduce  the  others.  But 
to  this  work  we  must  come  at  last. 

4.  I  am  therefore  now  to  consider  under  a  fourth  general 
head,  what  course  is  to  be  taken  with  individual  offenders, 
whom  the  general  influences  of  the  school-room  will  not 
control. 

( 1 .)  The  first  point  to  be  attended  to,  is  to  ascertain  who 
they  are.  JNot  by  appearing  suspiciously  to  watch  any  in- 
dividuals, for  this  would  be  almost  sufficient  to  make  them 
bad,  if  they  were  not  so  before.  Observe,  however;  no- 
tice, from  day  to  day,  the  conduct  of  individuals,  not  for  the 
purpose  of  reproving  or  punishing  their  faults,  but  to  enable 
you  to  understand  their  characters.  This  work  will  often 
require  great  adroitness,  and  very  close  scrutiny;  and  you 
will  find,  as  the  results  of  it,  a  considerable  variety  of  char- 
acter, which  the  general  influences  above  described,  will 
not  be  sufficient  to  control.  The  number  of  individuals 
will  not  be  great,  but  the  diversity  of  character  comprised 
in  it,  will  be  such,  as  to  call  into  exercise  all  your  powers 
of  vigilance  and  discrimination.  On  one  seat,  you  will 

a  beautiful  fairy  appeared  before  me.  She  placed  a  ring  on  my  fin- 
ger, and  left  me.'  The  next  began,  4  It  is  my  week  to  write  compo- 
sition, but  I  do  not  know  what  to  say.  However,  I  must  write  some- 
thing, so  it  shall  be  a  dialogue.'  Another  was  entitled  the  '  Magical 
Shoe,'  and  contained  a  marvellous  narration  of  adventures  made  in  a 
pair  of  shoes,  more  valuable  than  the  farfamed  '  seven  league  boots.' 
A  fourth  began,  '  Are  you  acquainted  with  that  new  scholar  ?'  c  No  ; 
but  I  don't  believe  I  shall  like  her.'  And  soon  the  *  Magical  Thim- 
ble,' the  i  Magical  Eye-glass,'  &c.,  were  read,  in  succession,  until  I 
could  not  but  exclaim, '  How  pleasing  is  variety!'  School  was  at 
length  closed,  and  the  young  ladies  again  attacked  the  piano.  '  Oh  !' 
repeated  I.  to  myself,  '  how  pleasing  is  variety!'  as  I  left  the  room,  to 
the  tune  of  Kendall's  March." 


MORAL    DISCIPLINE  143 

find  a  coarse,  rough  looking  boy,  who  will  openly  disobey 
your  commands  and  oppose  your  wishes;  on  another,  a 
more  sly  rogue,  whose  demure  and  submissive  look  is  as- 
sumed, to  conceal  a  mischief-making  disposition.  Here  is 
one,  whose  giddy  spirit  is  always  leading  him  into  difficul- 
ty, but  who  is  of  so  open  and  frank  a  disposition,  that  you 
will  most  easily  lead  him  back  to  duty;  but  there  is  an- 
other, who,  when  reproved,  will  fly  into  a  passion;  and 
there,  a  third,  who  will  stand  sullen  and  silent  before  you, 
when  he  has  done  wrong,  and  is  neither  to  be  touched  by 
kindness,  nor  awed  by  authority. 

Now  all  these  characters  must  be  studied.  It  is  true 
that  the  caution  given  in  a  preceding  part  of  this  chapter, 
against  devoting  undue  and  disproportionate  attention  to 
such  persons  must  not  be  forgotten.  Still,  these  individuals 
will  require,  and  it  is  right  that  they  should  receive,  a  far 
greater  degree  of  attention,  so  far  as  the  moral  administra- 
tion of  the  school  is  concerned,  than  their  mere  numbers 
would  appear  to  justify.  This  is  the  field  in  which  the 
teacher  is  to  study  human  nature,  for  here  it  shows  itself 
without  disguise.  It  is  through  this  class,  too,  that  a  very 
powerful  moral  influence  is  to  be  exerted  upon  the  rest 
of  the  school.  The  manner  in  which  such  individuals  are 
managed;  the  tone  the  teacher  assumes  towards  them;  the 
gentleness  with  which  he  speaks  of  their  faults,  and  the  un- 
bending decision  with  which  he  restrains  them  from  wrong, 
will  have  a  most  powerful  effect  upon  the  rest  of  the  schooL 
That  he  may  occupy  this  field,  therefore,  to  the  best  ad- 
vantage, it  is  necessary  that  he  should  first  thoroughly 
explore  it. 

By  understanding  the  dispositions  and  characters  of  such 
a  class  of  pupils  as  I  have  described,  I  do  not  mean  mere- 
ly watching  them,  with  vigilance,  in  school,  so  that  none 
of  their  transgressions  shall  go  unobserved  and  unpunish- 
ed. I  intend  a  far  deeper  and  more  thorough  examina- 
tion of  character.  Every  boy  has  something  or  other  which 
is  good  in  his  disposition  and  character,  which  he  is  aware 
of,  and  on  which  he  prides  himself;  find  out  what  it  is,  for 
it  may  often  be  made  the  foundation,  on  which  you  may 
build  the  superstructure  of  reform  Every  one  has  his 


144  MORAL   DISCIPLINE. 

peculiar  sources  of  enjoyment, — and  objects  of  pursuit, 
which  are  before  his  mind  from  day  to  day;  find  out  what 
they  are,  that  by  taking  an  interest  in  what  interests  him, 
and  perhaps  sometimes  assisting  him  in  his  plans,  you  can 
bind  him  to  you.  Every  boy  is,  from  the  circumstances 
in  which  he  is  placed  at  home,  exposed  to  temptations, 
which  have,  perhaps,  had  a  far  greater  influence  in  the  for- 
mation of  his  character,  than  any  deliberate  and  intention- 
al depravity  of  his  own;  ascertain  what  these  temptations 
are,  that  you  may  know  where  to  pity  him,  and  where  to 
blame.  The  knowledge  which  such  an  examination  of 
character  will  give  you,  will  not  be  confined  to  making  you 
acquainted  with  the  individual.  It  will  be  the  most  valu- 
able knowledge  which  a  man  can  possess,  both  to  assist 
him  in  the  general  administration  of  the  school,  and  in  his 
intercourse  among  mankind  in  the  business  of  life.  Men 
are  but  boys,  only  with  somewhat  loftier  objects  of  pursuit. 
Their  principles,  motives,  and  ruling  passions  are  essen- 
tially the  same.  Extended  commercial  speculations  are, 
so  far  as  the  human  heart  is  concerned,  substantially  what 
trading  in  jack-knives  and  toys  is,  at  school,  and  building 
a  snow  fort,  to  its  own  architects,  the  same  as  erecting  a 
monument  of  marble. 

(2.)  After  exploring  the  ground,  the  first  thing  to  be 
done,  as  a  preparation  for  reforming  individual  character, 
in  school,  is,  to  secure  the  personal  attachment  of  the  indi-* 
viduals  to  be  reformed.  This  must  not  be  attempted  by 
professions  and  affected  smiles,  and  still  less  by  that  sort  of 
obsequiousness,  common  in  such  cases,  which  produces  no 
effect  but  to  make  the  bad  boy  suppose  that  his  teacher 
is  afraid  of  him;  which,  by  the  way,  is,  in  fact,  in  such 
cases,  usually  true.  Approach  the  pupil  in  a  bold  and 
manly,  but  frank  and  pleasant  manner.  Approach  him 
as  his  superior,  but  still,  as  his  friend;  desirous  to  make 
him  happy,  not  merely  to  obtain  his  good-will.  And  the 
best  way  to  secure  these  appearances,  is,  just  to  secure 
the  reality.  Actually  be  the  boy's  friend.  Really  desire 
to  make  him  happy;  —  happy,  too,  in  his  own  way,  not 
in  yours.  Feel  that  you  are  his  superior,  and  that  you 
must  and  will  enforce  obedience ;  but  with  this  feel,  that 


MORAL    DISCIPLINE.  145 

probably  obedience  will  be  rendered,  without  any  contest. 
If  these  are  really  the  feelings  which  reign  within  you, 
the  boy  will  see  it,  and  they  will  exert  a  strong  influence 
over  him,  but  you  cannot  counterfeit  appearances. 

A  most  effectual  way  to  secure  the  good  will  of  a  schol- 
ar, is,  to  ask  him  to  assist  you.  The  Creator  has  so 
formed  the  human  heart,  that  doing  good  must  be  a  source 
of  pleasure,  and  he  who  tastes  this  pleasure  once,  will 
almost  always  wish  to  taste  it  again.  To  do  good  to  any 
individual,  creates  or  increases  the  desire  to  do  it. 

There  is  a  boy  in  your  school,  who  is  famous  for  his 
skill  in  making  whistles  from  the  green  branches  of  the 
poplar.  He  is  a  bad  boy,  and  likes  to  turn  his  ingenuity 
to  purposes  of  mischief.  You  observe  him  some  day  in 
school,  when  he  thinks  your  attention  is  engaged  in  an- 
other way,  blowing  softly  upon  one,  which  he  has  con- 
cealed in  his  desk,  for  the  purpose  of  amusing  his  neigh- 
bors, without  attracting  the  attention  of  the  teacher.  Now 
there  are  two  remedies.  Will  you  try  the  physical  one  ? 
Then  call  him  out  into  the  floor;  inflict  painful  punish- 
ment, and  send  him  smarting  to  his  seat,  with  his  heart 
full  of  anger  and  revenge,  to  plot  some  new  and  less  dan- 
gerous scheme  of  annoyance.  Will  you  try  the  moral 
one  ?  Then  wait  till  the  recess,  and  while  he  is  out  at  his 
play,  send  a  message  out  by  another  boy,  saying  that  you 
have  heard  he  is  very  skilful  in  making  whistles,  and  ask- 
ing him  to  make  one  for  you  to  carry  home  to  a  little  child 
at  your  boarding-house.  What  would,  in  ordinary  cases, 
be  the  effect  ?  It  would  certainly  be  a  very  simple  appli- 
cation; but  its  effect  would  be,  to  open  an  entirely  new 
train  of  thought  and  feeling  for  the  boy.  "  What!  "  he 
would  say  to  himself,  while  at  work  on  his  task,  "give 
the  master  pleasure  by  making  whistles!  Who  ever  heard 
of  such  a  thing?  I  never  thought  of  any  thing  but  giving 
him  trouble  and  pain. — I  wonder  who  told  him  I  could 
make  whistles?  "  He  would  find,  too,  that  the  new  enjoy- 
ment was  far  higher  and  purer  than  the  old,  and  would 
have  little  disposition  to  return  to  the  latter. 

I  do  not  mean  by  this  illustration,  that  such  a  measure 
13 


146  MORAL     DISCIPLINE. 

as  this,  would  be  the  only  notice  that  ought  to  be  taken 
of  such  an  act  of  wilful  disturbance  in  school.  Probably 
it  would  not.  What  measures  in  direct  reference  to  the 
fault  committed,  would  be  necessary,  would  depend  upon 
the  circumstances  of  the  case.  It  is  not  necessary  to  our 
purpose,  that  they  should  be  described  here. 

The  teacher  can  awaken  in  the  hearts  of  his  pupils,  a 
personal  attachment  for  him,  by  asking  in  various  ways, 
their  assistance  in  school,  and  then  appearing  honestly 
gratified  with  the  assistance  rendered.  Boys  and  girls  are 
delighted  to  have  what  powers  and  attainments  they  pos- 
sess, brought  out  into  action,  especially  where  they  can 
lead  to  useful  results.  They  love  to  be  of  some  conse- 
quence in  the  world,  and  will  be  especially  gratified  to  be 
able  to  assist  their  teacher.  Even  if  the  studies  of  a  tur- 
bulent boy  are  occasionally  interrupted  for  half  an  hour, 
that  he  might  help  you  arrange  papers,  or  rule  books,  or 
cut  the  tops  of  quills,  or  distribute  exercises,  it  will  be 
time  well  spent.  Get  him  to  co-operate  with  you  in  any 
thing,  and  he  will  feel  how  much  pleasanter  it  is  to  co- 
operate, than  to  thwart  and  oppose;  and  by  judicious 
measures  of  this  kind,  almost  any  boy  may  be  brought  over 
to  your  side. 

Another  means  of  securing  the  personal  attachment  of 
boys,  is  to  notice  them, — to  take  an  interest  in  their  pur- 
suits, and  the  qualities  and  powers  which  they  value  in 
one  another.  It  is  astonishing  what  an  influence  is  ex- 
erted by  such  little  circumstances,  as  stopping  at  a  play 
ground  a  moment,  to  notice  with  interest,  though  perhaps 
without  saying  a  word,  speed  of  running,  —  or  exactness 
of  aim,  — the  force  with  which  a  ball  is  struck,  —  or  the 
dexterity  with  which  it  is  caught  or  thrown.  The  teach- 
er must,  indeed,  in  all  his  intercourse  with  his  pupils, 
never  forget  his  station,  nor  allow  them  to  lay  aside  the 
respect,  without  which  authority  cannot  be  maintained. 
But  he  may  be,  notwithstanding  this,  on  the  most  intimate 
and  familiar  footing  with  them  all.  He  may  take  a  strong 
and  open  interest  in  all  their  enjoyments,  and  thus  awak- 
en on  their  part,  a  personal  attachment  to  himself,  which 
will  exert  over  them  a  constant  and  powerful  control. 


MORAL    DISCIPLINE.  147 

(3.)  The  efforts  described  under  the  last  head,  for  gain- 
ing a  personal  influence  over  those,  who  from  their  dispo- 
sition and  character  are  most  in  danger  of  doing  wrong, 
will  not  be  sufficient  entirely  to  prevent  transgression, 
Cases  of  deliberate,  intentional  wrong  will  occur,  and 
the  question  will  rise,  what  is  the  duty  of  the  teacher  in 
such  an  emergency  ?  When  such  cases  occur,  the  course 
to  be  taken  is,  first  of  all,  to  come  to  a  distinct  understand- 
ing on  the  subject  with  the  guilty  individual.  Think  of 
the  case  calmly,  until  you  have  obtained  just  and  clear 
ideas  of  it.  Endeavor  to  understand  precisely  in  what  the 
guilt  of  it  consists.  Notice  every  palliating  circumstance, 
and  take  as  favorable  a  view  of  the  thing  as  you  can, 
while,  at  the  same  time,  you  fix  most  firmly  in  your  mind 
the  determination  to  put  a  stop  to  it.  Then  go  to  the  indi- 
vidual, and  lay  the  subject  before  him,  for  the  purpose  of 
understanding  distinctly  from  his  own  lips,  what  he  intends 
to  do.  I  can  however,  as  usual,  explain  more  fully  what 
I  mean,  by  describing  a  particular  case,  substantially 
true. 

The  teacher  of  a  school  observed,  himself,  and  learned 
from  several  quarters,  that  a  certain  boy  was  in  the  habit 
of  causing  disturbance  during  time  of  prayer,  at  the  open- 
ing and  close  of  school,  by  whispering,  playing,  making 
gestures  to  the  other  boys,  and  throwing  things  about  from 
seat  to  seat.  The  teacher's  first  step  was,  to  speak  of  the 
subject,  generally,  before  the  whole  school,  not  alluding, 
however,  to  any  particular  instance  which  had  come  un- 
der his  notice.  These  general  remarks  produced,  as  he 
expected,  but  little  effect. 

He  waited  for  some  days,  and  the  difficulty  still  con- 
tinued. Had  the  irregularity  been  very  great,  it  would 
have  been  necessary  to  have  taken  more  immediate  meas- 
ures, but  he  thought  the  case  admitted  of  a  little  delay. 
In  the  meantime,  he  took  a  little  pains  to  cultivate  the 
acquaintance  of  the  boy,  to  discover  and  to  show  that  he 
noticed  what  was  good  in  his  character  and  conduct, 
occasionally  to  get  from  him  some  little  assistance,  and 
thus  to  gain  some  personal  ascendency  over  him. 

One  day,  when  every  thing  had  gone  smoothly  and 


148  MORAL    DISCIPLINE 

pleasantly,  the  teacher  told  the  boy,  at  the  close  of  school, 
that  he  wanted  to  talk  with  him  a  little,  and  asked  him  to 
walk  home  with  him.  It  was  not  uncommon  for  the  teach- 
er to  associate  thus,  with  his  pupils,  out  of  school,  and  this 
request,  accordingly,  attracted  no  special  attention.  On 
the  walk,  the  teacher  thus  accosted  the  criminal. 

"  Do  you  like  frank,  open  dealing,  James?" 

James  hesitated  a  moment,  and  then  answered  faintly, 
"  Yes  sir." 

"  Most  boys  do,  and  I  do;  and  I  supposed  that  you 
would  prefer  being  treated  in  that  way.  Do  you?" 

"  Yes  sir." 

"  Well,  I  am  going  to  tell  you  of  one  of  your  faults.  I 
have  asked  you  to  walk  with  me,  because  I  supposed  it 
would  be  pleasanter  for  you  to  have  me  see  you  privately, 
than  to  bring  it  up  in  school." 

James  said  it  would  be  pleasanter. 

"  Well,  the  fault  is,  being  disorderly  at  prayer  time. 
Now  if  you  like  frank  and  open  dealing,  and  are  willing 
to  deal  so  with  me,  I  should  like  to  talk  with  you  a  little 
about  it,  but  if  you  are  not  willing,  I  will  dismiss  the  sub- 
ject. I  do  not  wish  to  talk  with  you  now  about  it,  unless 
you  yourself  desire  it.  But  if  we  talk  at  all,  we  must  both 
be  open,  and  honest,  and  sincere.  Now  should  you  rath- 
er have  me  talk  with  you  or  not?" 

"  Yes  sir,  I  should  rather  have  you  talk  with  me  now, 
than  in  school." 

The  teacher  then  described  his  conduct,  in  a  mild  man- 
ner, using  the  style  of  simple  narration,  —  admitting  no 
harsh  epithets, — no  terms  of  reproach.  The  boy  was  sur- 
prised, for  he  supposed  he  had  not  been  noticed.  He 
thought,  perhaps  he  should  have  been  punished,  if  he  had 
been  observed.  The  teacher  said  in  conclusion: 

"  Now,  James,  I  do  not  suppose  you  have  done  this 
from  any  designed  irreverence  towards  God,  or  deliberate 
intention  of  giving  me  trouble  and  pain.  You  have  seve- 
ral times  lately,  assisted  me,  in  various  ways,  and  I  know 
from  the  cheerful  manner  with  which  you  comply  with  my 
wishes,  that  your  prevailing  desire  is,  to  give  me  pleasure, 
not  pain.  You  have  fallen  into  this  practice  through 


MORAL    DISCIPLINE.  149 

thoughtlessness;  but  that  does  not  alter  the  character  of 
the  sin.  To  do  so,  is  a  great  sin  against  God,  and  a  great 
offence  against  good  order  in  school.  You  see,  yourself, 
that  my  duty  to  the  school,  will  require  me  to  adopt  the 
most  decided  measures,  to  prevent  the  continuance  and  the 
spread  of  such  a  practice.  I  should  be  imperiously  bound 
to  do  it,  even  if  the  individual  was  the  very  best  friend  I 
had  in  school,  and  if  the  measures  necessary,  should  bring 
upon  him  great  disgrace  and  suffering.  Do  you  not  thinK 
it  would  be  so?" 

"  Yes  sir,"  said  James,  seriously,  "  I  suppose  it  would." 
"  I  want  to  remove  the  evil,  however,  in  the  pleasantest 
way.     Do  you  remember  my  speaking  on  this  subject,  in 
school  the  other  day?" 
"  Yes  sir." 

((  Well,  my  object  in  that,  was,  almost  entirely,  to  per- 
suade you  to  reform,  without  having  to  speak  to  you 
directly.  I  thought  it  would  be  pleasanter  to  you  to  be 
reminded  of  your  duty  in  that  way.  But  I  do  not  think 
it  did  you  much  good.  Did  it?" 

"  I  don't  think  I  have  played  so  much  since  then." 
"  Nor  I.  You  have  improved  a  little,  but  you  have  not 
decidedly  and  thoroughly  reformed.  So  I  was  obliged  to 
take  the  next  step  which  would  be  least  unpleasant  to  you; 
that  is,  talking  with  you  alone.  Now  you  told  me,  when 
we  began,  that  you  would  deal  honestly  and  sincerely  with 
me,  if  I  would  with  you.  I  have  been  honest  and  open.  I 
have  told  you  all  about  it,  so  far  as  I  am  concerned.  Now 
I  wish  you  to  be  honest,  and  tell  me  what  you  are  going 
to  do.  If  you  think,  from  this  conversation,  that  you  have 
done  wrong,  and  if  you  are  fully  determined  to  do  so  no 
more,  and  to  break  off  at  once,  and  for  ever  from  this  prac- 
tice, I  should  like  to  have  you  tell  me,  and  then  the  whole 
thing  will  be  settled.  On  the  other  hand,  if  you  feel  about 
it  pretty  much  as  you  have  done,  I  should  like  to  have  you 
tell  me  that  too,  honestly  and  frankly,  that  we  may  have  a 
distinct  understanding,  and  that  I  may  be  considering  what 
to  do  next.  I  shall  not  be  offended  with  you  for  giving  me 
either  of  these  answers,  but  be  sure  that  you  are  honest; 
you  promised  to  be  so." 


150  MORAL     DISCIPLINE. 

The  boy  looked  up  in  his  master's  face,  and  said,  with 
great  earnestness, 

"  Mr.  T.,  I  will  do  better.  I  will  not  trouble  you  any 
more." 

I  have  detailed  this  case,  thus  particularly,  because  it 
exhibits  clearly  what  I  mean,  by  going  directly  and  frank- 
ly to  the  individual,  and  coming  at  once,  to  a  full  under- 
standing.  In  nine  cases  out  of  ten,  this  course  will  be 
effectual.  For  four  years,  and  with  a  very  large  school, 
I  have  found  this  sufficient,  in  every  case  of  discipline 
which  has  occurred,  except  in  three  or  four  instances, 
where  something  more  was  required.  To  make  it  suc- 
cessful, however,  it  must  be  done  properly.  Several  things 
are  necessary.  It  must  be  deliberate;  generally  better 
after  a  little  delay.  It  must  be  indulgent,  so  far  as  the 
view  which  the  teacher  takes  of  the  guilt  of  the  pupil,  is 
concerned;  every  palliating  consideration  must  be  felt.  It 
must  be  firm  and  decided,  in  regard  to  the  necessity  of  a 
change,  and  the  determination  of  the  teacher  to  effect  it. 
It  must  also  be  open  and  frank;  no  insinuations,  no  hints, 
no  surmises,  but  plain,  honest,  open  dealing. 

In  many  cases,  the  communication  may  be  made  most 
delicately,  and  most  successfully,  in  writing.  The  more 
delicately  you  touch  the  feelings  of  your  pupils,  the  more 
tender  these  feelings  will  become.  Many  a  teacher  har- 
dens and  stupifies  the  moral  sense  of  his  pupils,  by  the 
harsh  and  rough  exposures,  to  which  he  drags  out  the  pri- 
vate feelings  of  the  heart.  A  man  may  easily  produce 
such  a  state  of  feeling  in  his  school-room,  that  to  address 
even  the  gentlest  reproof  to  any  individual,  in  the  hearing 
of  the  next,  would  be  a  most  severe  punishment;  and  on 
the  other  hand,  he  may  so  destroy  that  sensitiveness,  that 
his  vociferated  reproaches  will  be  as  unheeded  as  the  idle 
wind. 

If  now,  the  teacher  has  taken  the  course  recommended 
in  this  chapter;  if  he  has,  by  his  general  influence  in  the 
school,  done  all  in  his  power  to  bring  the  majority  of  his 
pupils  to  the  side  of  order  and  discipline;  if  he  has  then 
studied,  attentively  and  impartially,  the  characters  of  those 
who  cannot  thus  be  led;  if  he  has  endeavored  to  make  them 


MORAL  DISCIPLINE.  151 

his  friends,  and  to  acquire,  by  every  means,  a  personal  in- 
fluence over  them;  if,  finally,  when  they  do  wrong,  he 
goes,  plainly,  but  in  a  gentle  and  delicate  manner,  to  them, 
and  lays  before  them  the  whole  case ;  if  he  has  done  all 
this,  he  has  gone  as  far  as  moral  influence  will  car^y  him. 
My  opinion  is,  that  this  course,  faithfully  and  judiciously 
pursued,  will  in  almost  all  instances  succeed;  but  it  will 
not  in  all;  and  where  it  fails,  there  must  be  other,  and 
more  vigorous  and  decided  measures.  What  these  meas- 
ures of  restraint  or  punishment  shall  be,  must  depend  upon 
the  circumstances  of  the  case ;  but  in  resorting  to  them, 
the  teacher  must  be  decided  and  unbending. 

The  course  above  recommended,  is  not  trying  lax  and 
inefficient  measures,  for  a  long  time,  in  hopes  of  their  being 
ultimately  successful,  and  then,  when  they  are  found  not  to 
be  so,  changing  the  policy.  There  should  be,  through  the 
whole,  the  tone  and  manner  of  authority,  not  of  persuasion. 
The  teacher  must  be  a  monarch,  and  while  he  is  gentle  and 
forbearing,  always  looking  on  the  favorable  side  of  con- 
duct so  far  as  guilt  is  concerned,  he  must  have  an  eagle 
eye,  and  an  efficient  hand,  so  far  as  relates  to  arresting 
the  evil,  and  stopping  the  consequences.  He  may  slowly 
and  cautiously,  and  even  tenderly  approach  a  delinquent. 
He  may  be  several  days  in  gathering  around  him  the  cir- 
cumstances, of  which  he  is  ultimately  to  avail  himself,  in 
bringing  him  to  submission;  but,  while  he  proceeds  thus 
slowly,  and  tenderly,  he  must  come  with  the  air  of  au- 
thority and  power.  The  fact  that  the  teacher  bases  all 
his  plans,  on  the  idea  of  his  ultimate  authority,  in  every 
case,  may  be  perfectly  evident  to  all  the  pupils,  while  he 
proceeds  with  moderation  and  gentleness,  in  all  his  spe- 
cific measures.  Let  it  be  seen,  then,  that  the  constitution 
of  your  school  is  a  monarchy,  absolute  and  unlimited, — 
but  let  it  also  be  seen,  that  the  one  who  holds  the  power, 
is  himself  under  the  control  of  moral  principle,  in  all  that 
he  does,  and  that  he  endeavors  to  make  the  same  moral 
principle  which  guides  him,  go  as  far  as  it  is  possible  to 
make  it  go,  in  the  government  of  his  subjects. 


CHAPTER  V. 

RELIGIOUS    INFLUENCE. 

IN  consequence  of  the  unexampled  religious  liberty  en- 
joyed in  this  country,  for  which  it  is  happily  distinguished 
above  all  other  countries  on  the  globe,  there  necessarily 
results  a  vast  variety  of  religious  sentiment  and  action. 
We  cannot  enjoy  the  blessings  without  the  inconvenien- 
ces of  freedom.  Where  every  man  is  allowed  to  believe 
as  he  pleases,  some  will  undoubtedly  believe  wrong,  and 
others  will  be  divided,  by  embracing  views  of  a  subject 
which  are  different,  though  perhaps  equally  consistent  with, 
truth.  Hence,  we  have  among  us,  every  shade  and  every 

y'  variety  of  religious  opinion,  and  in  many  cases,  conten- 
i  tion  and  strife,  resulting  from  hopeless  efforts  to  produce 
Luniformity. 

A  stranger  who  should  come  among  us,  would  suppose 
from  the  tone  of  our  religious  journals,  and  from  the  gen- 
eral aspect  of  society  on  the  subject  of  religion,  that  the 
whole  community  was  divided  into  a  thousand  contending 
sects,  who  hold  nothing  in  common,  and  whose  sole  ob- 
jects are,  the  annoyance  and  destruction  of  each  other. 
But  if  we  leave  out  of  view  some  hundreds,  or  if  you 
please,  some  thousands  of  theological  controversialists, 
who  manage  the  public  discussions,  and  say  and  do  all  that 
really  comes  before  the  public  on  this  subject,  it  will  be 
found,  that  there  is  vastly  more  religious  truth  admitted 
by  common  consent,  among  the  people  of  New  England, 
than  is  generally  supposed.  This  common  ground,  I  shall 
endeavor  briefly  to  describe.  For  it  is  very  plain,  that 
the  teacher  must,  in  ordinary  cases,  confine  himself  to  it. 
By  common  consent,  however,  I  do  not  mean  the  consent 


RELIGIOUS    INFLUENCE.  153 

of  every  body ;  I  mean  that  of  the  great  majority  of  se- 
rious, thinking  men. 

But  let  us  examine,  first,  for  a  moment,  what  right  any 
member  of  the  community  has  to  express  and  to  dissemi- 
nate his  opinions,  with  a  view  to  the  inquiry,  whether  the 
teacher  is  really  bound  to  confine  himself  to  what  he  can 
do,  on  this  subject,  with  the  common  consent  of  his  em- 
ployers. 

The  French  nation  has  been,  for  some  time,  as  is  well 
known,  strongly  agitated  with  questions  of  politics.  It  is 
with  difficulty  that  public  tranquillity  is  preserved.  Every 
man  takes  sides.  Now  in  this  state  of  things,  a  wealthy 
gentleman,  opposed  to  the  revolutionary  projects  so  con- 
stantly growing  up  there,  and  from  principle  and  feeling, 
strongly  attached  to  a  monarchial  government,  wishes  to 
bring  up  his  children,  with  the  same  feelings,  which  he 
himself  cherishes.  He  has  a  right  to  do  so.  No  matter 
if  his  opinions  are  wrong.  He  ought,  it  will  be  generally 
supposed  in  this  country,  to  be  republican.  I  suppose  him 
to  adopt  opinions,  which  will  generally,  by  my  readers,  be 
considered  wrong,  that  I  may  bring  more  distinctly  to  view 
the  right  he  has  to  educate  his  children  as  he  thinks  it 
proper  that  they  should  be  educated.  He  may  be  wrong 
to  form  such  opinions.  But  the  opinions  once  formed,  he 
has  a  right,  with  which  no  human  power  can  justly  inter- 
fere, to  educate  his  children  in  conformity  with  those 
opinions.  It  is  alike  the  law  of  God  and  nature,  that  the 
father  should  control,  as  he  alone  is  responsible,  the  edu- 
cation of  his  child. 

Now  under  these  circumstances,  he  employs  an  Amer- 
ican mechanic,  who  is  residing  in  Paris,  to  come  to  his 
house  and  teach  his  children  the  use  of  the  lathe.  After 
some  time,  he  comes  into  their  little  workshop,  and  is 
astonished  to  find  the  lathe  standing  still,  and  the  boys 
gathered  round  the  republican  turner,  who  is  telling  them 
stories  of  the  tyranny  of  kings,  the  happiness  of  repub- 
licans, and  the  glory  of  war.  The  parent  remonstrates. 
The  mechanic  defends  himself. 

"  I  am  a  republican,"  he  says,  "  upon  principle,  and 
wherever  I  go,  I  must  exert  all  the  influence  in  my  power, 


154  RELIGIOUS  INFLUENCE. 

to  promote  free  principles,  and  to  expose  the  usurpations 
and  the  tyranny  of  kings." 

To  this  the  Frenchman  might  very  properly  reply, 

"In  your  efforts  to  promote  your  principles,  you  are 
limited,  or  you  ought  to  be  limited  to  modes  that  are  proper 
and  honorable.  I  employ  you  for  a  distinct  and  speci- 
fic purpose,  which  has  nothing  to  do  with  questions  of 
government;  and  you  ought  not  to  allow  your  love  of 
republican  principles,  to  lead  you  to  take  advantage  of 
the  position  in  which  I  place  you,  and  interfere  with 
my  plans  for  the  political  education  of  my  children." 

Now  for  the  parallel  case.  A  member  of  a  Congrega- 
tional Society,  is  employed  to  teach  a  school,  in  a  district, 
occupied  exclusively  by  Quakers. — a  case  not  uncommon, 
He  is  employed  there,  not  as  a  religious  teacher,  but  for 
another  specific  and  well-defined  object.  It  is  for  the 
purpose  of  teaching  the  children  of  that  district,  reading, 
writing,  and  calculation,  and  for  such  other  purposes,  ana- 
logous to  this,  as  the  law,  providing  for  the  establishment 
of  district  schools,  contemplated.  Now  when  he  is  placed 
in  such  a  situation;  with  such  a  trust  confided  to  him,  and 
such  duties  to  discharge,  it  is  not  right  for  him,  to  make 
use  of  the  influence,  which  this  official  station  gives  him, 
over  the  minds  of  the  children  committed  to  his  care,  for 
the  accomplishment  of  any  other  purposes  whatever,  which 
the  parents  would  disapprove.  It  would  not  be  considered 
right,  by  men  of  the  world,  to  attempt  to  accomplish  any 
other  purposes,  in  such  a  case ;  and  are  the  pure  and  holy 
principles  of  piety,  to  be  extended  by  methods  more  excep- 
tionable, than  those  by  which  political  and  party  contests 
are  managed? 

There  is  a  very  great  and  obvious  distinction  between 
the  general  influence  which  the  teacher  exerts  as  a  mem- 
ber of  the  community,  and  that  which  he  can  employ  in  his 
school-room  as  teacher.  He  has  unquestionably  a  right  to 
exert  upon  the  community,  by  such  means  as  he  shares  in 
common  with  every  other  citizen,  as  much  influence  as  he 
can  command,  for  the  dissemination  of  his  own  political, 
or  religious,  or  scientific  opinions.  But  the  strong  ascen- 
dency, which,  in  consequence  of  his  official  station,  he  has 


RELIGIOUS    INFLUENCE.  155 

obtained  over  the  minds  of  his  pupils,  is  sacred.  He  has 
no  right  to  use  it  for  any  purpose  foreign  to  the  specific 
objects  for  which  he  is  employed,  unless  by  the  consent,  ex- 
pressed  or  implied,  of  those  by  whom  he  is  entrusted  with 
his  charge.  The  parents  who  send  their  children  to  him, 
to  be  taught  to  read,  to  write  and  to  calculate,  may  have 
erroneous  views  of  their  duty,  as  parents,  in  other  respects. 
He  may  know  that  their  views  are  erroneous.  They  may 
be  taking  a  course,  which  the  teacher  knows  is  wrong. 
But  he  has  not,  on  this  account,  a  right  to  step  in  between 
the  parent  and  the  child,  to  guide  the  latter  according  to 
his  own  opinions,  and  to  violate  the  wishes  and  thwart  the 
plans  of  the  former. 

God  has  constituted  the  relation  between  the  parent  and 
the  child,  and  according  to  any  view,  which  a  rational  man 
can  take  of  thL  relation,  the  parent  is  alone  responsible 
for  the  guidance  he  gives  to  that  mind,  so  entirely  in  his 
power.  He  is  responsible  to  God;  and  where  our  opin- 
ions, in  regard  to  the  manner  in  which  any  of  the  duties, 
arising  from  the  relation,  are  to  be  performed,  differ  from 
his,  we  have  no  right  to  interfere,  without  his  consent,  to 
rectify  what  we  thus  imagine  to  be  wrong.  I  know  of  but 
one  exception,  which  any  man  whatever  would  be  inclin- 
ed to  make,  to  this  principle;  and  that  is,  where  the  pa- 
rent would,  if  left  to  himself,  take  such  a  course,  as  would 
ultimately  make  his  children  unsafe  members  of  society.  The 
community  have  a  right  to  interfere,  in  such  a  case,  as  they 
in  fact  do  by  requiring  every  man  to  provide  for  the  in- 
struction of  his  children,  and  in  some  other  ways  which 
need  not  now  be  specified.  Beyond  this,  however,  no  in- 
terference contrary  to  the  parent's  consent,  is  justifiable. 
Where  parents  will  do  wrong,  notwithstanding  any  persua- 
sions which  we  can  address  to  them,  we  must  not  violate 
the  principles  of  an  arrangement,  which  God  has  himself 
made,  but  submit  patiently  to  the  awful  consequences, 
which  will,  in  some  cases,  occur, — reflecting  that  the  re- 
sponsibility for  these  consequences,  is  on  the  head  of  those 
who  neglect  their  duty,  and  that  the  being  who  makes  them 
liable,  will  settle  the  account. 

Whatever,  then,  the  teacher  attempts  to  (Jo,  beyond  the 


156  RELIGIOUS    INFLUENCE. 

specific  and  defined  duties,  which  are  included  among  the 
objects  for  which  he  is  employed,  must  be  done  by  permis- 
sion,— by  the  voluntary  consent,  whether  tacit,  or  openly 
expressed,  of  those  by  whom  he  is  employed.  This  of 
course  confines  him  to  what  is,  generally,  common  ground, 
among  his  particular  employers.  In  a  republican  country, 
where  all  his  patrons  are  republican,  he  may  without  im- 
propriety, explain  and  commend  to  his  pupils,  as  occasion 
may  occur,  the  principles  of  free  governments,  and  the 
blessings  which  may  be  expected  to  flow  from  them.  But 
it  would  not  be  justifiable  for  him  to  do  this,  under  a  mon- 
archy, or  in  a  community  divided  in  regard  to  this  subject, 
because  this  question  does  not  come  within  the  objects, 
for  the  promotion  of  which,  his  patrons  have  associated, 
and  employed  him, — and  consequently,  he  has  no  right, 
while  continuing  their  teacher,  to  go  into  it,  without  their 
consent.  In  the  same  manner,  an  Episcopal  teacher,  in 
a  private  school,  formed  and  supported  by  Episcopalians, 
may  use  and  commend  forms  of  prayer,  and  explain  the 
various  usages  of  that  church,  exhibiting  their  excellence, 
and  their  adaptation  to  the  purposes  for  which  they  are 
intended.  He  may  properly  do  this,  because  in  the  case 
supposed,  the  patrons  of  the  school  are  united  on  this  sub- 
ject, and  their  tacit  consent  may  be  supposed  to  be  given. 
But  place  the  same  teacher  over  a  school  of  Quaker  chil- 
dren, whose  parents  dislike  forms  and  ceremonies  of  every 
kind,  in  religion,  and  his  duty  would  be  changed  altogeth- 
er. So,  if  a  Roman  Catholic  is  entrusted  with  the  instruc- 
tion of  a  common  district  school,  in  a  community  composed 
of  many  Protestant  denominations,  it  would  be  plainly  his 
duty  to  avoid  all  influence,  direct  or  indirect,  over  the 
minds  of  his  pupils,  except  in  those  religious  sentiments 
and  opinions  which  are  common  to  himself  and  all  his  em- 
ployers. I  repeat  the  principle.  He  is  employed  for  a 
specific  purpose,  and  he  has  no  right  to  wander  from  that 
purpose,  except  as  far  as  he  can  go,  with  the  common  consent 
of  his  employers. 

Now  the  common  ground,  on  religious  subjects,  in  this 
country,  is  very  broad.  There  are  indeed,  many  princi- 
ples, which  are,  in  my  view,  essential  parts  of  Christian- 


RELIGIOUS    INFLUENCE.  157 

ity,  which  are  subjects  of  active  discussion  among  us.  But 
setting  these  aside,  there  are  other  principles  equally  essen- 
tial, in  regard  to  which  the  whole  community  are  agreed; 
or  at  least,  if  there  is  a  dissenting  minority,  it  is  so  small, 
that  it  is  hardly  to  be  considered.  Let  us  look  at  some  of 
these  principles. 

1.  Our  community  is  agreed  that  there  is  a  God.    There 
is  probably  not  ar school  in  our  country,  where  the  parents 
of  the  scholars  would  not  wish  to  have  the  teacher,  in  his 
conversation  with  his  pupils,  take  this  for  granted,  and  al- 
lude reverently  and  judiciously  to  that  great  Being,  with 
the  design  of  leading  them  to  realize  his  existence,  and  to 
feel  his  authority. 

2.  Our  community  are  agreed,  that  we  are  responsible 
to  God  for  all  our  conduct.     Though  some  persons  absurd- 
ly pretend  to  believe,  that  the  Being  who  formed  this  world, 
if  indeed  they  think  there  is  any  such  Being,  has  left  it 
and  its  inhabitants  to  themselves,  not  inspecting  their  con- 
duct, and  never  intending  to  call  them  to  account,  they 
are  too  few  among  us  to  need  consideration.    A  difference 
of  opinion  on  this  subject,  might  embarrass  the  teacher  in 
France,  and  in  other  countries  in  Europe,  but  not  here. 
However  negligent  men  may  be  in  obeying  God's  com- 
mands, they  do  almost  universally  in  our  country,  admit 
in  theory,  the  authority  from  which  they  come;   and  be- 
lieving this,  the  parent,  even  if  he  is  aware  that  he  him- 
self does  not  obey  these  commands,  chooses  to  have  his 
children  taught  to  respect  them.     The  teacher  will  thus 
be  acting  with  the  consent  of  his  employers,  in  almost  any 
part  of  our  country,  in  endeavoring  to  influence  his  pupils 
to  perform  moral  duties,  not  merely  from  worldly  motives, 
nor  from  mere  abstract  principles  of  right  and  wrong,  but 
from  regard  to  the  authority  of  God. 

3.  The  community  are  agreed,  too,  in  the  belief  of  the 
immortality  of  the  soul.     They  believe,  almost  without  ex- 
ception, that  there  is  a  future  state  of  being,  to  which  this 
is  introductory  and  preparatory,  and  almost  every  father 
and  mother  in  our  country,  wish  to  have  their  children 
keep  this  in  mind,  and  to  be  influenced  by  it,  in  all  their 
conduct. 

14 


158  RELIGIOUS    INFLUENCE. 

4.  The  community  are  agreed,  that  we  have  a  revelation 
from  htavwi.    I  believe  there  are  very  few  instances  where 
the  parents  would  not  be  glad  to  have  the  Bible  read  from 
time  to  time,  its  geographical  and  historical  meanings  il- 
lustrated, and  its  moral  lessons  brought  to  bear  upon  the 
hearts  and  lives  of  their  children.     Of  course,  if  the  teach- 
er is  so  unwise  as  to  make  such  a  privilege,  if  it  were  al- 
lowed him,  the  occasion  of  exerting  an  influence,  upon  one 
side  or  the  other  of  some  question  which  divides  the  com- 
munity around  him,  he  must  expect  to  excite  jealousy  and 
distrust,  and  to  be  excluded  from  a  privilege,  which  he 
might  otherwise    have   been   permitted   freely  to   enjoy. 
There  may,  alas!  be  some  cases,  where  the  use  of  the 
Scriptures  is  altogether  forbidden  in  school.     But  proba- 
bly in  almost  every  such  case,  it  would  be  found,  that  it  is 
from  fear  of  its  perversion  to  sect  or  party  purposes,  and 
not  from  any  unwillingness  to  have  the  Bible  used  in  the 
way  I  have  described. 

5.  The  community  are  agreed  in  theory,  that  personal 
attachment  to  the   Supreme  Being,  is  the  duty  of  every  hu- 
man soul;   and  every  parent,  with  exceptions  so  few  that 
they  are  not  worth  naming,  wishes  that  his  children  should 
cherish  that  affection,  and  yield  their  hearts  to  its  influ- 
ence.    He  is  willing  therefore  that  the  teacher,  of  course 
without  interfering  with  the  regular  duties  for  the  perform- 
ance of  which  he  holds  his  office,  should,  from  time  to  time, 
so  speak  of  this  duty, — of  God's  goodness  to  men, — of  his 
daily  protection, — and  his  promised  favors,  as  to  awaken, 
if  possible,  this  attachment,  in  the  hearts  of  his  children. 
Of  course,  it  is  very  easy  for  the  teacher,  if  he  is  so  dis- 
posed, to  abuse  this  privilege  also.     He  can,  under  pre- 
tence of  awakening  and  cherishing  the  spirit  of  piety  in 
the  hearts  of  his  pupils,  present  the  subject  in  such  aspects 
and  relations,  as  to  arouse  the  sectarian  or  denomination- 
al feelings  of  some  of  his  employers.     But  I  believe  if 
this  was  honestly  and  fully  avoided,  there  are  few,  if  any, 
parents,  in  our  country,  who  would  not  be  gratified  to  have 
the  great  principle  of  love  to  God,  manifest  itself  in  the 
instructions  of  the  school-room,  and  showing  itself,  by  its 
genuine  indications  in  the   hearts  and   conduct  of  their 
children. 


RELIGIOUS    INFLUENCE.  159 

6.  The  cormnujftity  are  agreed,  not  only  in  believing 
that  piety  consists  primarily,  in  love  to  God,  but  that  the 
life  of  piety  is  to  be  commenced  by  penitence  for  past  sins, 
and  forgivene#9~,wr$O')ne  way  or  other,  through  a  Saviour. 
I  am  aware  that  one  class  'of  theological  writers,  in  the 
heat  of  controversy,  charge  the  other  with  believing  that 
Jesus  Christ  was  nothing  more  nor  less  than  a  teacher  of 
religion,  and  there  are  unquestionably,  individuals,  who 
take  this  view.  But  these  individuals  are  few.  There 
are  very  few  in  our  community,  who  do  not  in  some  sense, 
look  upon  Jesus  Christ  as  our  Saviour, — our  Redeemer; 
who  do  not  feel  themselves  in  some  way,  indebted  to  him, 
for  the  offer  of  pardon.  There  may  be,  here  and  there,  a 
theological  student,  or  a  contributor  to  the  columns  of  a 
polemical  magazine,  who  ranks  Jesus  Christ  with  Moses 
and  with  Paul.  But  the  great  mass  of  the  fathers  and 
mothers,  of  every  name  and  denomination  through  all  the 
ranks  of  society,  look  up  to  the  Saviour  of  sinners,  with 
something  at  least  of  the  feeling,  that  he  is  the  object  of 
extraordinary  affection  and  reverence.  I  am  aware  how- 
ever, that  I  am  approaching  the  limit,  which,  in  many 
parts  of  our  country,  ought  to  bound  the  religious  influ- 
ence of  the  teacher  in  a  public  school;  and  on  this  sub- 
ject, as  on  every  other,  he  ought  to  do  nothing  directly  or 
indirectly,  which  would  be  displeasing  to  those  who  have 
entrusted  children  to  his  care. 

So  much  ground,  it  seems,  the  teacher  may  occupy, 
by  common  consent,  in  New-England,  and  it  certainly  is 
a  great  deal  It  may  be  doubted  whether,  after  all  our 
disputes,  there  is  a  country  in  the  world,  whose  inhabit- 
ants have  so  much  in  common,  in  regard  to  religious  be- 
lief. There  is,  perhaps,  no  country  in  the  world,  where 
the  teacher  may  be  allowed  to  do  so  much,  towards  lead- 
ing his  pupils  to  fear  God,  and  to  obey  his  commands, 
with  the  cordial  consent  of  parents,  as  he  can  here.* 

*  In  speaking  of  this  common  ground,  and  in  commenting  upon  it, 
1  wish  not  to  be  understood  that  I  consider  these  truths  as  compris- 
ing all  that  is  essential  in  Christianity.  Very  far  from  it.  A  full 
expression  of  the  Christian  faith,  would  go  far  in  advance  of  all 
here  presented.  We  must  not  confound  however,  what  is  essential  to 


160  RELIGIOUS    INFLUENCE. 

The  ground  which  I  have  been  laying  out,  is  common, 
all  over  our  country;  in  particular  places,  there  will  be, 
even  much  more,  that  is  common.  Of  course,  the  teacher, 
in  such  cases,  will  be  at  much  greater  liberty.  If  a  Ro- 
man Catholic  community  establish  a  school,  and  appoint 
a  Roman  Catholic  teacher,  he  may  properly,  in  his  inter- 
course with  his  scholars,  allude,  with  commendation,  to 
the  opinions  and  practices  of  that  church.  If  a  college  is 
established  by  the  Methodist  denomination,  the  teacher 
of  that  institution  may,  of  course,  explain  and  enforce 
there,  the  views  of  that  society.  Each  teacher  is  confin- 
ed only  to  those  views  which  are  common  to  the  founders  and 
supporters  of  the  particular  institution,  to  which  he  is  at- 
tached. 

I  trust  the  principle  which  I  have  been  attempting  to 
enforce,  is  fully  before  the  reader's  mind,  namely,  that 
moral  and  religious  instruction  in  a  school,  being  in  a 
great  degree  extra-official,  in  its  nature,  must  be  carried 
no  farther  than  the  teacher  can  go  with  the  common  con- 
sent, either  expressed  or  implied,  of  those  who  have  found- 
ed, and  who  support  his  school.  Of  course,  if  those 
founders  forbid  it  altogether,  they  have  a  right  to  do  so, 
and  the  teacher  must  submit.  The  only  question  that 
can  justly  arise,  is,  whether,  he  will  remain  in  such  a 
situation,  or  seek  employment,  where  a  door  of  useful- 
ness, here  closed  against  him,  will  be  opened.  While  he 
remains,  he  must  honestly  and  fully  submit  to  the  wishes 
of  those,  in  whose  hands  Providence  has  placed  the  ulti- 
mate responsibility  of  training  up  the  children  of  his 
school.  It  is  only  for  a  partial  and  specific  purpose,  that 
they  are  placed  under  his  care. 

The  religious  reader  may  inquire,  why  I  am  so  anxious 
to  restrain,  rather  than  to  urge  on,  the  exercise  of  reli- 
gious influence  in  schools.  "  There  is  far  too  little," 
some  one  will  say,  "  instead  of  too  much,  and  teachers 
need  to  be  encouraged  and  led  on  in  this  duty,  not  to  be 
restrained  from  it."  There  is,  indeed,  far  too  little  reli- 

prepare  the  way  for  the  forgiveness  of  sin,  with  what  is  essential  that 
a  child  should  understand,  in  order  to  secure  his  penitence  and  for- 
giveness. The  former  is  a  great  deal ',  the  latter,  very  little. 


RELIGIOUS    INFLUENCE.  161 

gious  influence  exerted  in  common  schools.  What  I  have 
said,  has  been  intended  to  prepare  the  way  for  an  increase 
of  it.  My  view  of  it  is  this: 

If  teachers  do  universally  confine  themselves  to  limits, 
which  I  have  been  attempting  to  define,  they  may  ac- 
complish within  these  limits,  a  vast  amount  of  good.  By 
attempting  however,  to  exceed  them,  the  confidence  of 
parents  is  destroyed  or  weakened,  and  the  door  is  closed. 
In  this  way,  injury  to  a  very  great  extent  has  been  done 
in  many  parts  of  our  country.  Parents  are  led  to  asso- 
ciate with  the  very  idea  of  religion,  indirect  and  per- 
haps secret  efforts  to  influence  their  children,  in  a  way 
which  they  themselves  would  disapprove.  They  transfer 
to  the  cause  of  piety  itself,  the  dislike  which  was  first 
awakened  by  exceptionable  means  to  promote  it;  and 
other  teachers,  seeing  these  evil  effects,  are  deterred  from 
attempting  what  they  might  easily  and  pleasantly  accom- 
plish. Before  therefore,  attempting  to  enforce  the  duty, 
and  to  explain  the  methods  of  exerting  religious  influence 
in  school,  I  thought  proper,  distinctly  to  state,  with  what 
restrictions,  and  within  what  limits,  the  work  is  to  be 
done. 

There  are  many  teachers  who  profess  to  cherish  the 
spirit,  and  to  entertain  the  hopes  of  piety,  who  yet  make 
no  effort  whatever  to  extend  its  influence  to  the  hearts 
of  their  pupils.  Others  appeal  sometimes  to  religious 
truth,  merely  to  assist  them  in  the  government  of  the 
school.  They  perhaps  bring  it  before  the  minds  of  dis- 
obedient pupils,  in  a  vain  effort  to  make  an  impression 
upon  the  conscience  of  one  who  has  done  wrong,  and  who 
cannot  by  other  means  be  brought  to  submission.  But 
the  pupil,  in  such  cases,  understands,  or  at  least  he  be- 
lieves, that  the  teacher  applies  to  religious  truth,  only  to 
eke  out  his  own  authority,  and  of  course,  it  produces  no 
effect.  Another  teacher  thinks  he  must,  to  discharge  his 
duty,  give  a  certain  amount  weekly,  of  what  he  considers 
religious  instruction.  He  accordingly  appropriates  a  reg- 
ular portion  of  time  to  a  formal  lecture  or  exhortation, 
which  he  delivers  without  regard  to  the  mental  habits  of 


162  RELIGIOUS    INFLUENCE. 

thought  and  feeling  which  prevail  among  his  charge.  He 
forgets  that  the  heart  must  be  led,  not  driven,  to  piety, 
and  that  unless  his  efforts  are  adapted  to  the  nature  of 
the  minds  he  is  acting  upon,  and  suited  to  influence  them> 
he  must  as  certainly  fail  of  success,  as  when  there  is  a 
want  of  adaptedness  between  the  means  and  the  end  in 
any  other  undertaking  whatever. 

The  arrangement  which  seems  to  me  as  well  calculated 
as  any  for  the  religious  exercises  of  a  school,  is  this: 

I.  In  the  morning  open  the  school  with  a  very  short 
prayer,  resembling  in  its  object  and  length,  the  opening 
prayer  in  the  morning,  at  Congregational  churches.  The 
posture,  which  from  four  years'  experience,  I  would  re- 
commend  at  this  exercise,  is  sitting,  with  the  heads  reclined 
upon  the  desks.  The  prayer,  besides  being  short,  should 
be  simple  in  its  language,  and  specific  in  its  petitions.  A 
degree  of  particularity  and  familiarity,  which  might  be 
improper  elsewhere,  is  not  only  allowable  here,  but  neces- 
sary to  the  production  of  the  proper  effect.  That  the 
reader  may  understand  to  what  extent  I  mean  to  be  un- 
derstood to  recommend  this,  I  will  subjoin  a  form,  such 
as  in  spirit  I  suppose  such  a  prayer  ought  to  be. 

"  Our  Father  in  heaven,  who  has  kindly  preserved  the  pupils  and 
the  teacher  of  this  school  during  the  past  night,  come  and  grant  us 
a  continuance  of  thy  protection  and  blessing  during  this  day.  We 
cannot  spend  the  day  prosperously  and  happily  without  tliee.  Come 
then,  and  be  in  this  school-room  during  this  day.  and  help  us  all  to 
be  faithful  and  successful  in  duty. 

"  Guide  the  teacher  in  all  that  he  may  do.  Give  him  wisdom  and 
patience,  and  faithfulness.  May  he  treat  all  his  pupils  with  kindness ; 
and  if  any  of  them  should  do  any  thing  that  is  wrong,  wilt  thou  help 
him,  gently  but  firmly  to  endeavor  to  bring  him  back  to  duty.  May 
he  sympathize  with  the  difficulties  and  trials  of  all,  and  promote  the 
present  happiness,  as  well  as  the  intellectual  progress,  of  all  who  are 
committed  to  his  care. 

"  Take  care  of  the  pupils  too.  May  they  spend  the  day  pleasantly 
and  happily  together.  Wilt  thou  who  didst  originally  give  us  all  our 
powers,  direct  and  assist  us  all,  this  day,  in  the  use  and  improve- 
ment of  them.  Remove  difficulties  from  our  path,  and  give  us  all, 
fidelity  and  patience  in  every  duty.  Let  no  one  of  us  destroy  our 
peace  and  happiness  this  day,  by  breaking  any  of  thy  commands, 
— or  encouraging  our  companions,  in  sins — or  neglecting,  in  any 
respect,  our  duty.  We  ask  all  in  the  name  of  our  great  Redeemer. 
Amen." 


RELIGIOUS    INFLUENCE.  163 

Of  course  the  prayer  of  each  day  will  be  varied,  unless, 
in  special  cases,  the  teacher  prefers  to  read  some  form  like 
the  above.  But  let  every  one  be  minute  and  particular, 
relating  especially  to  school, — to  school  temptations,  and 
trials,  and  difficulties.  Let  every  one  be  filled  with  ex- 
pressions relating  to  school,  so  that  it  will  bear  upon  every 
sentence,  the  impression,  that  it  is  the  petition  of  a  teacher 
and  his  pupils,  at  the  throne  of  grace. 

2.  If  the  pupils  can  sing,  there  may  be  a  single  verse, 
or  sometimes  two  verses  of  some  well  known  hymn,  sung 
after  the  prayer,  at  the  opening  of  the  school.     Teachers 
will  find  it  much  easier  to  introduce  this  practice,  than  it 
would  at  first  be  supposed.     In  almost  every  school,  there 
are  enough  who  can  sing  to  begin,  especially  if  the  first 
experiment  is  made  in  a  recess,  or  before  or  after  school; 
and  the  beginning  once  made,  the  difficulty  is  over.     If 
but  few  tunes  are  sung,  a  very  large  proportion  of  the 
scholars  will  soon  learn  them. 

3.  Let  there  be  no  other  regular  exercise  until  the  close 
of  the  afternoon  school.     When  that  hour  has  arrived,  let 
the  teacher  devote  a  very  short  period,  five  minutes  per- 
haps, to  religious  instruction,  given  in  various  ways.     At 
one  time,  he  may  explain  and  illustrate  some  important 
truth.     At  another,  read,  and  comment  upon,  a  very  short 
portion  of  Scripture.     jVt  another,  relate  an  anecdote,  or 
fact,  which  will  tend  to  interest  the  scholars  in  the  perform- 
ance of  duty.     The  teacher  should  be  very  careful  not  to 
imitate  on  these  occasions,  the  formal  style  of  exhortation 
from    the  pulpit.     Let  him  use    no    cant  and  hackneyed 
phrases,  and  never  approach  the  subject  of  personal  piety, 
— i.  e.  such  feelings  as  penitence  for  sin,  trust  in  God, 
and  love  for  the  Saviour, — unless  his  own  heart  is  really, 
at  the  time,  warmed  by  the  emotions  which  he  wishes  to 
awaken  in  others.     Children  very  easily  detect  hypocrisy. 
They  know  very  well,  when  a  parent  or  teacher  is  talking 
to  them  on  religious  subjects,  merely  as  a  matter  of  course, 
for  the  sake  of  effect;   and  such  constrained  and  formal 
efforts  never  do  any  good. 

Let  then  every  thing  which  you  do,  in  reference  to  this 
subject,  be  done  with  proper  regard  to  the  character  and 


164  RELIGIOUS    INFLUENCE. 

condition  of  the  youthful  mind,  and  in  such  a  way  as  shall 
be  calculated  to  interest,  as  well  as  to  instruct.  A  cold  and 
formal  exhortation,  or  even  an  apparently  earnest  one,  de- 
livered in  a  tone  of  affected  solemnity,  will  produce  no 
good  effect.  /  Perhaps  I  ought  not  to  say  it  will  produce 
no  good  effect:  for  good  does  sometimes  result,  as  a  sort 
of  accidental  consequence,  from  almost  any  thing.  I  mean 
it  will  have  no  effectual  tendency  to  do  good.  You  must 
vary  your  method  too,  in  order  to  interest  your  pupils. 
Watch  their  countenances  when  you  are  addressing  them, 
and  see  if  they  look  interested.  If  they  do  not,  be  as- 
sured that  there  is  something  wrong,  or  at  least  something 
ill-judged,  or  inefficient,  in  your  manner  of  explaining  the 
truths  which  you  wish  tp  have  produce  an  effect  upon  their 
minds. 

That  you  may  be  prepared  to  bring  moral  and  religious 
truths  before  their  minds  in  the  way  I  have  described,  your 
own  mind  must  take  a  strong  interest  in  this  class  of  truths. 
You  must  habituate  yourself  to  look  at  the  moral  and  re- 
ligious aspects  and  relations  of  all  that  you  see  and  hear. 
When  you  are  reading,  notice  such  facts,  and  remember 
such  narratives,  as  you  can  turn  to  good  account,  in  this 
way.  In  the  same  way,  treasure  up  in  mind  such  occur- 
rences as  may  come  under  your  own  personal  observation, 
when  travelling,  or  when  mixing  with  society. 

That  the  spirit  and  manner  of  these  religious  exercises, 
may  be  the  more  distinctly  understood,  I  will  give  some 
examples. 

Let  us  suppose  then  that  the  hour  for  closing  school  has 
come.  The  books  are  laid  aside;  the  room  is  still;  the 
boys  expect  the  few  words  which  the  teacher  is  accustom- 
ed to  address  to  them,  and  looking  up  to  him,  they  listen 
to  hear  what  he  has  to  say. 

"  You  may  take  your  Bibles. 

The  boys,  by  a  simultaneous  movement,  open  their 
desks,  and  take  from  them  their  copies  of  the  sacred 
volume. 

"  What  is  the  first  book  of  the  New  Testament?  " 

"  Matthew:  "  they  all  answer,  at  once. 

"The  second?"    "  Mark."  "  The  third?  "    «  Luke." 


RELIGIOUS    INFLUENCE.  165 

"  The  next?  "  "  John."  "  The  next?  "  (<  The  Acts." 
"  The  next?" 

Many  answer,  "  Romans." 

"  The  next?" 

A  few  voices  say,  faintly  and  with  hesitation,  "  First  of 
Corinthians." 

fi  I  perceive  your  answers  become  fainter  and  fainter. 
Do  you  know  what  is  the  last  book  of  the  New  Testa- 
ment?" 

The  boys  answer  promptly,  "Revelations." 

"  Do  you  know  what  books  are  between  the  Acts  and 
the  book  of  Revelation?" 

Some  say,  t{  No  sir;  "  some  begin  to  enumerate  such 
books  as  occur  to  them,  and  some  perhaps  begin  to  name 
them  promptly,  and  in  their  regular  order. 

"I  do  not  mean,"  interrupts  the  teacher,  "the  names 
of  the  books,  but  the  kinds  of  books." 

The  boys  hesitate. 

11  They  are  epistles  or  letters.  Do  you  know  who  wrote 
the  letters?" 

<£  Paul,"  "  Peter,"  answer  many  voices  at  once. 

"  Yes,  there  were  several  writers.  Now  the  point  which 
I  wish  to  bring  before  you  is  this;  do  you  know  in  what 
order,  I  mean  on  what  principles,  the  books  are  arranged?" 

"  No  sir;  "  is  the  universal  reply. 

cc  I  will  tell  you.  First  come  all  Paul's  epistles.  If 
you  turn  over  the  leaves  of  the  Testament,  you  will  see 
that  Paul's  letters  are  all  put  together,  after  the  book  of 
the  Acts;  and  what  I  wish  you  to  notice  is,  that  they  are 
arranged  in  the  order  of  their  length.  The  longest  comes 
first,  and  then  the  next,  and  so  on  to  the  shortest,  which 
is  the  epistle  to  Philemon.  This  of  course,  comes  last — 
"  No; — I  am  wrong  in  saying  it  is  the  last  of  Paul's  Epis- 
tles, there  is  one  more, — to  the  Hebrews;  and  this  comes 
after  all  the  others,  for  there  has  been  a  good  deal  of  dis- 
pute whether  it  was  really  written  by  Paul.  You  will  see 
that  his  name  is  not  at  the  beginning  of  it,  as  it  is  in  his 
other  epistles:  so  it  was  put  last." 

"Then  comes  the  epistle  of  James.  Will  you  see 
whether  it  is  longer  than  any  that  come  after  it?  "  The 


166  RELIGIOUS    INFLUENCE. 

boys,  after  a  minute's  examination,  answer,  "  Yes  sir," 
"Yes  sir." 

"  What  comes  next?  " 

"  The  epistles  of  Peter." 

cc  Yes;  and  you  will  see  that  the  longest  of  Peter's 
epistles  is  next  in  length  to,  that  of  James':  And  indeed 
all  his  are  arranged  in  the  order  of  their  length." 

"  Yes  sir." 

"  What  comes  next?  " 

"  John's." 

11  Yes,  and  they  arranged  in  the  order  of  their  length. 
Do  you  now  understand  the  principles  of  the  arrangement 
of  the  epistles?  " 

"  Yes  sir." 

(( I  should  like  to  have  any  of  you  who  are  interested 
in  it,  try  to  express  this  principle  in  a  few  sentences,  on 
paper,  and  lay  it  on  my  desk  to-morrow,  and  I  will  read 
what  you  write.  You  will  find  it  very  difficult  to  express 
it.  Now  you  may  lay  aside  your  books.  It  will  be  pleas- 
anter  for  you  if  you  do  it  silently." 

Intelligent  children  will  be  interested  even  in  so  simple  a 
point  as  this, — much  more  interested  than  a  maturer  mind, 
unacquainted  with  the  peculiarities  of  children,  would  sup- 
pose. By  bringing  up,  from  time  to  time,  some  such  liter- 
ary inquiry  as  this,  they  will  be  led  insensibly  to  regard 
the  Bible  as  opening  a  field  for  interesting  intellectual  re- 
search, and  will  more  easily  be  led  to  study  it. 

At  another  time,  the  teacher  spends  his  five  minutes  in 
aiming  to  accomplish  a  very  different  object.  I  will  sup- 
pose it  to  be  one  of  those  afternoons,  when  all  has  gone 
smoothly  and  pleasantly,  in  school.  There  has  been 
nothing  to  excite  strong  interest  or  emotion;  and  there 
has  been,  (as  every  teacher  knows  there  sometimes  will 
be,)  without  any  assignable  cause  which  he  can  perceive, 
a  calm,  and  quiet,  and  happy  spirit,  diffused  over  the  minds 
and  countenances  of  the  little  assembly.  His  evening 
communication  should  accord  with  this  feeling,  and  he 
should  make  it  the  occasion  to  promote  those  pure  and 
hallowed  emotions  in  which  every  immortal  mind  must 
find  its  happiness,  if  it  is  to  enjoy  any,  worth  possessing. 


RELIGIOUS    INFLUENCE.  167 

When  all  is  still,  the  teacher  addresses  his  pupils  as  fol- 
lows. 

"  I  have  nothing  but  a  simple  story  to  tell  you  to-night. 
It  is  true,  and  the  fact  interested  me  very  much  when  1 
witnessed  it,  but  I  do  not  know  that  it  will  interest  you 
now,  merely  to  hear  it  repeated.  It  is  this: 

"  Last  vacation,  I  was  travelling  in  a  remote  and  thinly 
settled  country,  among  the  mountains,  in  another  state;  I 
was  riding  with  a  gentleman  on  an  almost  unfrequented 
road.  Forests  were  all  around  us,  and  the  houses  were 
small  and  very  few. 

"  At  length,  as  we  were  passing  a  humble  and  solitary 
dwelling,  the  gentleman  said  to  me,  *  There  is  a  young 
woman  sick  in  this  house;  should  you  like  to  go  in  and 
see  her?'  e  Yes  sir,5  said  I,  (  very  much.  She  can  have 
very  few  visitors  I  think,  in  this  lonely  place,  and  if  you 
think  she  would  like  to  see  us,  I  should  like  to  go.3 

"We  turned  our  horses  towards  the  door,  and  as  we 
were  riding  up,  I  asked  what  was  the  matter  with  the 
young  woman. 

Cf  c  Consumption,'  the  gentleman  replied,  *  and  I  sup- 
pose shejyill  not  live  long.5 

"  At  that  moment  we  dismounted  and  entered  the  house. 
It  was  a  very  pleasant  summer 5s  afternoon,  and  the  door 
was  open.  We  entered  and  were  received  by  an  elderly 
lady,  who  seemed  glad  to  see  us.  In  one  corner  of  the 
room  was  a  bed,  on  which  was  lying  the  patient  whom  we 
had  come  to  visit.  She  was  pale  and  thin  in  her  counte- 
nance, but  there  was  a  very  calm  and  happy  expression 
beaming  in  her  eye.  I  went  up  to  her  bedside  and  asked 
her  how  she  did. 

£C  I  talked  with  her  some  time,  and  found  that  she  was  a 
Christian.  She  did  not  seem  to  know  whether  she  would 
get  well  again  or  not,  and  in  fact,  she  did  not  seem  to  care 
much  about  it.  She  was  evidently  happy  then,  and  be- 
lieved she  should  continue  so.  She  had  been  penitent  for 
her  sins,  and  sought  and  obtained  forgiveness,  and  enjoy- 
ed, in  her  loneliness,  not  only  the  protection  of  God,  but 
also  his  presence  in  her  heart,  diffusing  peace  and  happi- 
ness there.  When  I  came  into  the  house,  I  said  to  my- 


168  RELIGIOUS    INFLUENCE. 

self,  '  I  pity,  1  am  sure,  a  person  who  is  confined  by 
sickness  in  this  lonely  place,  with  nothing  to  interest  or 
amuse  her;'  but  when  I  came  out,  I  said  to  myself,  «  I  do 
not  pity  her  at  all.' 

Never  destroy  the  effect  of  such  a  communication  as 
this,  by  attempting  to  follow  it  up  with  an  exhortation,  or 
with  general  remarks,  vainly  attempting  to  strengthen  the 
impression. 

Never,  do  I  say  ?     Perhaps  there  may  be  some  excep- 
tions.    But  children  are  not  reached  by  formal  exhorta- 
tions; their  hearts  are  touched  and  affected  in  other  ways. 
!  Sometimes  you  must  reprove,  sometimes  you  must  con- 
demn.    But  indiscriminate  and  perpetual  harangues  about 
j  the  guilt  of  impenitence,  and  earnest  entreaties  to  begin  a 
life  of  piety,  only  harden  the  hearts  they  are  intended  to 
soften,  and  consequently  confirm  those  who  hear  them  in 
the  habits  of  sin. 

In  the  same  way  a  multitude  of  other  subjects,  infinite  in 
number  and  variety,  may  be  brought  before  your  pupils 
at  stated  seasons  for  religious  instruction.  It  is  unneces- 
sary to  give  any  more  particular  examples,  but  still  it  may 
not  be  amiss  to  suggest  a  few  general  principles,  which 
ought  to  guide  those  who  are  addressing  the  young,  on 
every  subject,  and  especially  on  the  subject  of  religion. 

1.  Make  no  effort  to  simplify  language.  Children  always 
observe  this,  and  are  always  displeased  with  it,  unless  they 
are  very  young;  and  it  is  not  necessary.  They  can  under- 
stand ordinary  language  well  enough,  if  the  subject  is  with- 
in their  comprehension,  and  treated  in  a  manner  adapted 
to  their  powers.  If  you  doubt  whether  children  can  un- 
derstand language,  tell  such  a  story  as  this,  with  ardor  of 
tone  and  proper  gesticulation,  to  a  child  only  two  or  three 
years  old; 

"  I  saw  an  enormous  dog  in  the  street  the  other  day. 
He  was  sauntering  along  slowly,  until  he  saw  a  huge  piece 
of  meat  lying  down  on  the  ground.  He  grasped  it  instant- 
ly between  his  teeth  and  ran  away  with  all  speed,  until  he 
disappeared  around  a  corner  so  that  I  could  see  him  no 
more." 

In  such  a  description,  there  is  a  large  number  of  words 


RELIGIOUS    INFLUENCE.  169 

which  such  a  child  would  not  understand  if  they  stood 
alone,  but  the  whole  description  would  be  perfectly  intel- 
ligible. The  reason  is,  the  subject  is  simple;  the  facts 
are  such  as  a  very  little  child  would  be  interested  in;  and 
the  connexion  of  each  new  word,  in  almost  every  instance, 
explains  its  meaning.  That  is  the  way  by  which  children 
learn  all  language.  They  learn  the  meaning  of  words, 
not  by  definitions,  but  by  their  connexion  in  the  sentences 
in  which  they  hear  them;  and  by  long  practice,  they  ac- 
quire an  astonishing  facility  of  doing  this.  'Tis  true 
they  sometimes  mistake,  but  not  often,  and  the  teacher  of 
children  of  almost  any  age,  need  not  be  afraid  that  he  shall 
not  be  understood.  There  is  no  danger  from  his  using 
the  language  of  men,  if  his  subject,  and  the  manner  in 
which  he  treats  it,  and  the  form  and  structure  of  his  sen- 
tences are  what  they  ought  to  be.  Of  course  there  may 
be  cases,  in  fact  there  often  will  be  cases,  where  particu- 
lar words  will  require  special  explanation,  but  they  will  be 
comparatively  few,  and  instead  of  making  efforts  to  avoid 
them,  it  will  be  better  to  let  them  come.  The  pupils  will 
be  interested  and  profited  by  the  explanation. 

Perhaps  some  may  ask  what  harm  it  will  do,  to  simplify 
language,  when  talking  to  children.  "It  certainly  can 
do  no  injury,"  they  may  say,  "  and  it  diminishes  all  pos- 
sibility of  being  misunderstood."  It  does  injury  in  at  least 
three  ways. 

(1.)  It  disgusts  the  young  persons  to  whom  it  is  address- 
ed, and  prevents  their  being  interested  in  what  is  said. 
I  once  met  two  children  twelve  years  of  age,  who  had 
just  returned  from  hearing  a  very  able  discourse,  deliv- 
ered before  a  number  of  sabbath  schools,  assembled  on 
some  public  occasion.  "  How  did  you  like  the  discourse?" 
said  I. 

"  Very  well  indeed,"  they  replied,  (t  only,"  said  one  of 
them,  smiling,  "he  talked  to  us  as  if  we  were  all  little 
children." 

Girls  and  boys  however  young,  never  consider  them- 
selves little  children,  for  they  can  always  look  down  upon 
some  younger  than  themselves.  They  are  mortified,  when 
treated  as  though  they  could  not  understand  what  is  really 

10 


170  RELIGIOUS    INFLUENCE. 

within  the  reach  of  their  faculties.  They  do  not  like  to 
have  their  powers  underrated ;  and  they  are  right  in  this 
feeling.  It  is  common  to  all,  old  and  young. 

(2.)  Children  are  kept  back  in  learning  language,  if 
their  teacher  makes  effort  to  come  down,  as  it  is  called,  to 
their  comprehension  in  the  use  of  words.  Notice  that  I 
say,  in  the  use  of  words,  for  as  I  shall  show  presently,  it  is 
absolutely  necessary  to  come  down  to  the  comprehension 
of  children,  in  some  other  respects.  If  however,  in  the 
use  of  words,  those  who  address  children,  confine  them- 
selves to  such  words  as  children  already  understand,  how 
are  they  to  make  progress  in  that  most  important  of  all 
studies,  the  knowledge  of  language.  Many  a  mother  keeps 
back  her  child,  in  this  way,  to  a  degree  that  is  hardly  con- 
ceivable ;  thus  doing  all  in  her  power  to  perpetuate  in  the 
child  an  ignorance  of  its  mother  tongue. 

Teachers  ought  to  make  constant  efforts  to  increase  their 
scholars'  stock  of  words,  by  using  new  ones  from  time  to 
time,  taking  care  to  explain  them  when  the  connexion  does 
not  do  it  for  them:  So  that  instead  of  coming  down  to  the 
language  of  childhood,  he  ought  rather  to  go  as  far  away 
from  it,  as  he  possibly  can,  without  leaving  his  pupils  be- 
hind him. 

(3.)  But  perhaps  the  greatest  evil  of  this  practice  is,  it 
satisfies  the  teacher.  He  thinks  he  addresses  his  pupils 
in  the  right  manner,  and  overlooks,  altogether,  the  real 
peculiarities,  in  which  the  power  to  interest  the  young  de- 
pends. He  talks  to  them  in  simple  language,  and  wonders 
why  they  are  not  interested.  He  certainly  is  plain  enough. 
He  is  vexed  with  them  for  not  attending  to  what  he  says, 
attributing  it  to  their  dulness  or  regardlessness  of  all  that 
is  useful  or  good,  instead  of  perceiving  that  the  great  dif- 
ficulty is  his  own  want  of  skill.  These  three  evils  are  suf- 
ficient to  deter  the  teacher  from  the  practice. 

2.  Present  your  subject  not  in  its  general  views,  but  in 
its  minute  details.  This  is  the  great  secret  of  interesting 
the  young.  Present  it  in  its  details,  and  in  its  practical 
exemplifications;  do  this  with  any  subject  whatever,  and 
children  will  always  be  interested. 

To  illustrate  this,  let  us  suppose  two  teachers,  wishing 


RELIGIOUS    INFLUENCE.  171 

to  explain  to  their  pupils  the  same  subject,  and  taking  the 
following  opposite  methods  of  doing  it.  One,  at  the  close 
of  school,  addresses  his  charge  as  follows; 

"  The  moral  character  of  any  action,  that  is,  whether  it 
is  right  or  wrong,  depends  upon  the  motives  with  which  it 
is  performed.  Men  look  only  at  the  outward  conduct,  but 
God  looks  at  the  heart.  In  order  now  that  any  action 
should  be  pleasing  to  God,  it  is  necessary  it  should  be  per- 
formed from  the  motive  of  a  desire  to  please  him. 

<c  Now  there  are  a  great  many  other  motives  of  action 
which  prevail  among  mankind,  besides  this  right  one. 
There  is  love  of  praise,  love  of  money,  affection  for 
friends,  &c." 

By  the  time  the  teacher  has  proceeded  thus  far,  he  finds, 
as  he  looks  around  the  room,  that  the  countenances  of  his 
pupils  are  assuming  a  listless  and  inattentive  air.  One  is 
restless  in  his  seat,  evidently  paying  no  attention.  Anoth- 
er has  reclined  his  head  upon  his  desk,  lost  in  a  reverie, 
and  others  are  looking  round  the  room,  at  one  another,  or 
at  the  door,  restless  and  impatient,  hoping  the  dull  lecture 
will  soon  be  over. 

The  other  teacher  says; 

C£  I  have  thought  of  an  experiment  I  might  try,  which 
would  illustrate  to  you  a  very  important  subject.  Suppose 
I  should  call  one  of  the  boys,  A.,  to  me,  and  should  say 
to  him;  c  I  want  you  to  go  to  your  seat  and  transcribe  for 
me  a  piece  of  poetry,  as  handsomely  as  you  can.  If  it  is 
written  as  well  as  you  can  possibly  write  it,  I  will  give  you 
25  cents.'  Suppose  I  say  this  to  him  privately,  so  that 
none  of  the  rest  of  the  boys  can  hear,  and  he  goes  to  take 
his  seat,  and  begins  to  work.  You  perceive  that  I  have 
presented  to  him  a  motive  to  exertion." 

"  Yes  sir,"  say  the  boys,  all  looking  with  interest  at 
the  teacher,  wondering  how  this  experiment  is  going  to 
end. 

"  Well,  what  would  that  motive  be?" 

"  Money."  "The  quarter  of  a  dollar."  "  Love  of 
money, "or  perhaps  other  answers  are  heard,  from  the 
various  parts  of  the  room. 

"Yes,  love  of  money,  it  is  called.      Now  suppose  I 


172  RELIGIOUS    INFLUENCE. 

should  call  another  boy,  one  with  whom  I  was  particular- 
ly acquainted,  and,  who,  I  should  know  would  make  an 
effort  to  please  me,  and  should  say  to  him,  '  For  a  partic- 
ular reason,  I  want  you  to  copy  this  poetry' — giving  him 
the  same — '  I  wish  you  to  copy  it  handsomely,  for  I  wish 
to  send  it  away,  and  have  not  time  to  copy  it  myself.  Can 
you  do  it  as  well  as  not?' 

"  Suppose  the  boy  should  say  he  could,  and  should  take 
it  to  his  seat,  and  begin;  neither  of  the  boys  knowing  what 
the  other  was  doing.  I  should  now  have  offered  to  this 
second  boy  a  motive.  Would  it  be  the  same  with  the 
other?  " 

"No  sir." 

"  What  was  the  other?  " 

"  Love  of  money." 

"  What  is  this?  " 

The  boys  hesitate. 

"It  might  be  called,"  continues4he  teacher,  "friend- 
ship. It  is  the  motive  of  a  vast  number  of  the  actions 
which  are  performed  in  this  world. 

"  Do  you  think  of  any  other  common  motive  of  action, 
besides  love  of  money  and  friendship?  " 

"  Love  of  honor,"  says  one  "  fear,"  says  another. 

"  Yes,"  continues  the  teacher,  "both  these  are  com- 
mon motives.  I  might,  to  exhibit  them,  call  two  more 
boys,  one  after  the  other,  and  say  to  the  one,  I  will  thank 
you  to  go  and  copy  this  piece  of  poetry  as  well  as  you  can. 
I  want  to  send  it  to  the  school  committee  as  a  specimen 
of  improvement  made  in  this  school. 

"To  the  other,  I  might  say;  'you  have  been  a  care- 
less boy  to-day ;  you  have  not  got  your  lessons  well.  Now 
take  your  seat,  and  copy  this  poetry.  Do  it  carefully. 
Unless  you  take  pains,  and  do  it  as  well  as  you  possibly 
can,  I  shall  punish  you  severely,  before  you  go  home.' 

"  How  many  motives  have  I  got  now?  Four,  I  be- 
lieve." 

"  Yes  sir,"  say  the  boys. 

"  Love  of  money,  friendship,  love  of  honor,  and  fear. 
We  called  the  first  boy  A. ;  let  us  call  the  others,  B.  C. 
and  D. ;  no,  we  shall  remember  better  to  call  them  by  the 


RELIGIOUS    INFLUENCE.  173 

name  of  their  motives.  We  will  call  the  first,  M.  for  mo- 
ny;  the  second,  F.  for  friendship;  the  third,  H.  for  hon- 
or; and  the  last  F. ; — we  have  got  an  F.  already;  what 
shall  we  do?  On  the  whole,  it  is  of  no  consequence,  we 
will  have  two  F.'s,  we  shall  remember  not  to  confound 
them. 

"  But  there  are  a  great  many  other  motives  entirely  dis- 
tinct from  these.  For  example,  suppose  I  should  say  to 
a  fifth  boy,  '  Will  you  copy  this  piece  of  poetry?  it  belongs 
to  one  of  the  little  boys  in  school:  he  wants  a  copy  of  it, 
and  I  told  him  I  would  try  to  get  some  one  to  copy  it  for 
him.'  This  motive  now  would  be  benevolence;  that  is,  if 
the  boy,  who  was  asked  to  copy  it,  was  not  particularly 
acquainted  with  the  other,  and  did  it  chiefly  to  oblige  him. 
We  will  call  this  boy  B.  for  Benevolence. 

"  Now  suppose  I  call  a  sixth  boy,  and  say  to  him,  '  I 
have  set  four  or  five  boys  to  work,  copying  this  piece  of 
poetry;  now  I  want  you  to  set  down  and  see  if  you  can- 
not do  it  better  than  any  of  them.  No  one  of  them  knows 
that  any  other  is  writing,  except  you,  but  after  the  others 
are  all  done,  I  will  compare  them  and  see  if  yours  is  not 
the  best.'  This  would  be  trying  to  excite  emulation.  We 
must  call  this  boy  then,  E. — But  the  time  I  intended  to 
devote  to  talking  with  you  on  this  subject  for  to-day,  is 
expired.  Perhaps,  to-morrow,  I  will  take  up  the  subject 
again." 

The  reader  now  will  observe  that  the  grand  peculiarity 
of  the  instructions  given  by  this  last  teacher,  as  distinguish- 
ed from  those  of  the  first,  consists  in  this;  that  the  parts 
of  the  subject  are  presented  in  detail,  and  in  particular 
exemplification.  In  the  first  case,  the  whole  subject  was 
despatched  in  a  single,  general,  and  comprehensive  des- 
cription; in  the  latter,  it  is  examined  minutely,  one  point 
being  brought  forward  at  a  time.  The  discussions  are 
enlivened  too,  by  meeting  and  removing  such  little  diffi- 
culties, as  will  naturally  come  up,  in  such  an  investigation. 
Boys  and  girls  will  take  an  interest  in  such  a  lecture ;  they 
will  regret  to  have  it  come  to  a  conclusion,  and  will  give 
their  attention  when  the  subject  is  again  brought  forward, 
on  the  following  day.  Let  us  suppose  the  time  for  continu- 
15* 


174  RELIGIOUS     INFLUENCE. 

ing  the  exercise  to  have  arrived.  The  teacher  resumes 
the  discussion  thus. 

"  I  was  talking  to  you  yesterday  about  the  motives  of 
action;  how  many  had  I  made?  " 

Some  say,  "  Four,"  some  "  Five,"  some  "  Six." 

"  Can  you  name  any  of  them?  " 

The  boys  attempt  to  recollect  them,  and  they  give  the 
names  in  the  order  in  which  they  accidentally  occur  to  the 
various  individuals.  Of  course,  the  words  Fear,  Emula- 
tion, Honor,  Friendship,  and  others,  come  in  confused  and 
irregular  sounds,  from  every  part  of  the  school-room. 

11  You  do  not  recollect  the  order,"  says  the  teacher, 
"  and  it  is  of  no  consequence,  for  the  order  I  named  was 
only  accidental.  Now  to  go  on  with  my  account;  sup- 
pose all  these  boys  to  sit  down,  and  go  to  writing,  each 
one  acting  under  the  impulse  of  the  motive  which  had 
been  presented  to  him  individually.  But  in  order  to  make 
the  supposition  answer  my  purpose,  I  must  add  two  other 
cases.  I  will  imagine  that  one  of  these  boys  is  called 
away,  a  few  minutes,  and  leaves  his  paper  on  his  desk,  and 
that  another  boy,  of  an  ill-natured  and  morose  disposition, 
happening  to  pass  by  and  see  his  paper,  thinks  he  will  sit 
down  and  write  upon  it  a  few  lines,  just  to  plague  and  vex 
the  one  who  was  called  away.  We  will  also  suppose  that 
I  call  another  boy  to  me,  who,  I  have  reason  to  believe,  is 
a  sincere  Christian,  and  say  to  him,  '  Here  is  a  new  duty 
for  you  to  perform  this  afternoon.  This  piece  of  poetry 
is  to  be  copied;  now  do  it  carefully  and  faithfully.  You 
know  that  this  morning  you  committed  yourself  to  God's 
care  during  the  day ;  now  remember  he  has  been  watching 
you  all  the  time,  thus  far,  and  he  will  be  noticing  you  all 
the  time  you  are  doing  this;  he  will  be  pleased  if  you  do 
your  duty  faithfully.' 

"  The  boys  thus  all  go  to  writing.  Now  suppose  a 
stranger  should  come  in,  and  seeing  them  all  busy,  should 
say  to  me, 

"  '  What  are  all  these  boys  doing? ' 

"  l  They  are  writing.5 

"  '  What  are  they  writing?,' 

"  *  They  are  writing  a  piece  of  poetry.* 


RELIGIOUS    INFLUENCE.  175 

"  e  They  seem  to  be  very  busy;  they  are  very  industri- 
ous, good  boys.' 

"  'Oh  no!  it  is  not  by  any  means  certain  that  they  are 
good  boys.' 

"  '  I  mean  that  they  are  good  boys  now;  that  they  are 
doing  right  at  this  time.9 

"  '  T/iat  is  not  certain;  some  of  them  are  doing  right 
and  some  are  doing  very  wrong;  though  they  are  all  writ- 
ing the  same  piece  of  poetry.' 

"The  stranger  would  perhaps  look  surprised  while  I 
said  this,  and  would  ask  an  explanation,  and  I  might 
properly  reply  as  follows. 

"  '  Whether  the  boys  are,  at  this  moment,  doing  right, 
or  wrong,  depends  not  so  much  upon  what  they  are  doing, 
as  upon  the  feelings  of  the  heart  with  which  they  are  doing 
it.  I  acknowledge  that  they  are  all  doing  the  same  thing 
outwardJy, — they  are  all  writing  the  same  extract,  and 
they  are  all  doing  it  attentively  and  carefully,  but  they 
are  thinking  of  very  different  things.' 

"  '  What  are  they  thinking  of?  ' 

"  '  Do  you  see  that  boy?'  1  might  say,  pointing  to  one 
of  them.  'His  name  is  M.'  He  is  writing  for  money. 
He  is  saying  to  himself  all  the  time,  '  I  hope  I  shall  get 
the  quarter  of  a  dollar.'  He  is  calculating  what  he  shall 
buy  with  it,  and  every  good  or  bad  letter  that  he  makes, 
he  is  considering  the  chance  whether  he  shall  succeed  or 
fail  in  obtaining  it.' 

"  'What  is  the  next  boy  to  him  thinking  of?' 

cc '  His  name  is  B.  He  is  copying  to  oblige  a  little  fel- 
low, whom  he  scarcely  knows,  and  is  trying  to  make  his 
copy  handsome  so  as  to  give  him  pleasure.  He  is  think- 
ing how  gratified  his  schoolmate  will  be  when  he  receives 
it,  and  is  forming  plans  to  get  acquainted  with  him.' 

"  '  Do  you  see  that  boy  in  the  back  seat.  He  has  ma- 
liciously taken  another  boy's  place  just  to  spoil  his  wort 
He  knows  too  that  he  is  breaking  the  rules  of  the  school, 
in  being  out  of  his  place,  but  he  stays,  notwithstanding,  and 
is  delighting  himself  with  thinking  how  disappointed  and 
sad  his  schoolmate  will  be,  when  he  comes  in  and  finds 
his  work  spoiled,  because  he  was  depending  on  doing  it 
all  himself.' 


176  RELIGIOUS     INFLUENCE. 

"  f  I  see,'  the  stranger  might  say  by  this  time,  f  that 
there  is  a  great  difference  among  these  boys;  have  you 
told  me  about  them  all?5 

"  'No,'  I  might  reply,  c  there  are  several  others.  I  will 
only  mention  one  more.  He  sits  in  the  middle  of  the  sec- 
ond desk.  He  is  writing  carefully,  simply  because  he 
wishes  to  do  his  duty  and  please  God.  He  thinks  that  God 
is  present,  and  loves  him,  and  takes  care  of  him,  and  he  is 
obedient  and  grateful  in  return.  I  do  not  mean  that  he  is 
all  the  time  thinking  of  God,  but  love  to  him  is  his  motive 
of  effort.' 

"  Do  you  see  now,  boys,  what  I  mean  to  teach  you  by 
this  long  supposition?" 

"  Yes  sir." 

"I  presume  you  do.  Perhaps  it  would  be  difficult  for 
you  to  express  it  in  words,  I  can  express  it  in  general 
terms,  thus, 

fe  Our  characters  depend  not  on  what  we  do,  but  on  the 
spirit  and  motive  with  which  we  do  it.  What  I  have  been 
saying  throws  light  upon  one  important  verse  in  the  Bible, 
which  I  should  like  to  have  read.  James  have  you  a  Bi- 
ble in  your  desk?" 

"  Yes  sir." 

"  Will  you  turn  to  1  Samuel  xvi:  7.  and  then  rise  and 
read  it.  Read  it  loud,  so  that  all  the  school  can  hear." 

James  reads  as  follows. 

"  MAN  LOOKETH  ON  THE  OUTWARD  APPEARANCE,  BUT 
GOD  LOOKETH  ON  THE  HEART." 

This  is  the  way  to  reach  the  intellect  and  the  heart  of 
the  young.  Go  into  detail.  Explain  truth  and  duty,  not 
in  an  abstract  form,  but  exhibit  it,  in  actual  and  living 
examples. 

(3.)  Be  very  cautious  how  you  bring  in  the  awful  sanc- 
tions of  religion,  to  assist  you  directly,  in  the  discipline  of 
your  school.  You  will  derive  a  most  powerful  indirect 
assistance,  from  the  influence  of  religion  in  the  little  com- 
munity which  you  govern.  But  this  will  be,  through  the 
prevalence  of  its  spirit  in  the  hearts  of  your  pupils,  and 
not  from  any  assistance  which  you  can  usually  derive  from 
it  in  managing  particular  cases  of  transgression.  Many 


RELIGIOUS     INFLUENCE  177 

teachers  make  great  mistakes  in  this  respect.  A  bad  boy, 
who  has  done  something  openly  and  directly  subversive  of 
the  good  order  of  the  school,  or  the  rights  of  his  compan- 
ions, is  called  before  the  master,  who  thinks  that  the  most 
powerful  weapon  to  wield  against  him  is  the  Bible.  So 
while  the  trembling  culprit  stands  before  him,  he  adminis- 
ters to  him  a  reproof,  which  consists  of  an  almost  ludicrous 
mixture  of  scolding,  entreaty,  religious  instruction,  and 
threatening  of  punishment.  But  such  an  occasion  as  this  is 
no  time  to  touch  a  bad  boy's  heart.  He  is  steeled,  at  such 
a  moment,  against  any  thing  but  mortification,  and  the  de- 
sire to  get  out  of  the  hands  of  the  master;  and  he  has  an 
impression,  that  the  teacher  appeals  to  religious  principles, 
only  to  assist  him  to  sustain  his  own  authority.  Of  course, 
religious  truth,  at  such  a  time,  can  make  no  good  impres- 
sion. There  may  be  exceptions  to  this  rule.  There  doubt- 
less are.  I  have  found  some;  and  every  successful  teacher 
who  reads  this,  will  probably  call  some  to  mind,  some 
which  have  occurred  in  the  course  of  his  own  experience. 
I  am  only  speaking  of  what  ought  to  be  the  general  rule, 
which  is,  to  reserve  religious  truths  for  moments  of  a  dif- 
ferent character  altogether.  Bring  the  principles  of  the 
Bible  forward  when  the  mind  is  calm,  when  the  emotions 
are  quieted,  and  all  within  is  at  rest;  and  in  exhibiting 
them,  be  actuated  not  by  a  desire  to  make  your  duties  of 
government  easier,  but  to  promote  the  real  and  permanent 
happiness  of  your  charge. 

(4.)  Do  not  be  eager  to  draw  from  your  pupils,  an  ex- 
pression of  their  personal  interest  in  religious  truth.  Lay 
before  them,  and  enforce,  by  all  the  means  in  your  pow- 
er, the  principles  of  Christian  duty,  but  do  not  converse 
with  them  for  the  purpose  of  gratifying  your  curiosity  in 
regard  to  their  piety,  or  your  spiritual  pride  by  counting  up 
the  numbers  of  those  who  have  been  led  to  piety  by  your 
influence.  Beginning  to  act  from  Christian  principles  is 
the  beginning  of  a  new  life,  and  it  may  be  an  interesting 
subject  of  inquiry  to  you,  to  ascertain  how  many  of  your 
pupils  have  experienced  the  change.  But,  in  many  cases, 
it  would  merely  gratify  curiosity  to  know.  There  is  no 
question  too,  that  in  very  many  instances,  the  faint  glim- 


178  RELIGIOUS     INFLUENCE. 

mering  of  religious  interest,  which  would  have  kindled  into 
a  bright  flame,  is  extinguished  at  once  and  perhaps  for 
ever,  by  the  rough  inquiries  of  a  religious  friend.  Besides 
if  you  make  inquiries,  and  form  a  definite  opinion  of  your 
pupils,  they  will  know  that  this  is  your  practice,  and  many 
a  one  will  repose  in  the  belief  that  you  consider  him  or  her 
a  Christian,  and  you  will  thus  increase  the  number,  already 
unfortunately  too  large,  of  those,  who  maintain  the  form 
and  pretences  of  piety,  without  its  power;  whose  hearts 
are  filled  with  self-sufficiency  and  spiritual  pride,  and  per- 
haps zeal  for  the  truths  and  external  duties  of  religion, 
while  the  real  spirit  of  piety  has  no  place  there.  They 
trust  to  some  imaginary  change,  long  since  passed  by, 
and  which  has  proved  to  be  spurious  by  its  failing  of  its 
fruits.  The  best  way,  in  fact  the  only  way,  to  guard 
against  this  danger,  especially  with  the  young,  is  to  show, 
by  your  manner  of  speaking  and  acting  on  this  subject,  at 
all  times,  that  you  regard  a  truly  religious  life,  as  the  only 
evidence  of  piety; — and  that  consequently,  however  much 
interest  your  pupils  may  apparently  take  in  religious  in- 
struction, they  cannot  know,  and  you  cannot  know,  whether 
Christian  principle  reigns  within  them,  in  any  other  way 
than  by  following  them  through  life  and  observing  how, 
and  with  what  spirit,  the  various  duties  of  it  are  performed. 
There  are  very  many  fallacious  indications  of  piety;  so 
fallacious  and  so  plausible,  that  there  are  very  few,  even 
among  intelligent  Christians,  who  are  not  often  greatly  de- 
ceived. "  By  their  fruits  ye  shall  know  them,"  said  the 
Saviour,  a  direction  sufficiently  plain,  one  would  think, 
and  pointing  to  a  test,  sufficiently  easy  to  be  applied.  But 
it  is  slow  and  tedious  work  to  wait  for  fruits;  and  we  ac- 
cordingly seek  a  criterion,  which  will  help  us  quicker  to  a 
result.  You  see  your  pupil  serious  ,arid  thoughtful.  It  is 
well:  but  it  is  not  proof  of  piety.  You  see  him  deeply 
interested  when  you  speak  of  his  obligations  to  his  Maker, 
and  the  duties  he  owes  to  him.  This  is  well;  but  it  is  no 
proof  of  piety.  You  know  he  reads  his  Bible  daily  and 
offers  his  morning  and  evening  prayers.  When  you  speak 
to  him  of  God's  goodness,  and  of  his  past  ingratitude,  his 
bosom  heaves  with  emotion,  and  the  tear  stands  in  his  eye. 


RELIGIOUS    INFLUENCE.  179 

It  is  all  well.  You  may  hope  that  he  is  going  to  devote  his 
life  to  the  service  of  God.  But  you  cannot  know;  you 
cannot  even  believe,  with  any  great  confidence.  These 
appearances  are  not  piety.  They  are  not  conclusive  evi- 
dences of  it.  They  are  only,  in  the  young,  faint  grounds 
of  hope,  that  the  genuine  fruits  of  piety  will  appear. 

I  am  aware  that  there  are  many  persons,  so  habituated 
to  judging  with  confidence  of  the  piety  of  others,  from 
some  such  indications  as  I  have  described,  that  they  will 
think  I  carry  my  cautions  to  the  extreme.  Perhaps  I  do; 
but  the  Saviour  said,  "  By  their  fruits  ye  shall  know  them," 
and  it  is  safest  to  follow  his  direction. 

By  the  word  fruits,  however,  our  Saviour  unquestion- 
ably does  not  mean,  the  mere  moral  virtues  of  this  life. 
The  fruits  to  be  looked  at,  are  the  fruits  of  piety,  that  is, 
indications  of  permanent  attachment  to  the  Creator,  and 
a  desire  to  obey  his  commands.  We  must  look  for  these. 

There  is  no  objection  to  your  giving  particular  individ- 
uals special  instruction,  adapted  to  their  wants  and  cir- 
cumstances. You  may  do  this,  by  writing,  or  in  other 
ways,  but  do  not  lead  them  to  make  up  their  minds  fully 
that  they  are  Christians,  in  such  a  sense  as  to  induce  them 
to  feel  that  the  work  is  done.  Let  them  understand  that 
becoming  a  Christian  is  beginning  a  work,  not  finishing  it. 
Be  cautious  how  you  form  an  opinion  even  yourself  on  the 
question  of  the  genuineness  of  their  piety.  Be  content 
not  to  know.  You  will  be  more  faithful  and  watchful  if 
you  consider  it  uncertain,  and  they  will  be  more  faithful 
and  watchful  too. 

(5.)^  Bririg^  very  fully  aryJ.  frequently,  before  your  pupils 
the  practical  duties  of  religion  in  all  their  details,  espe- 
cially their  duties  at  home;  to  their  parents  and  to  their 
brothers  and  sisters.  Do  not,  however,  allow  them  to  mis- 
take morality  for  religion.  Show  them  clearly  what  piety 
is,  in  its  essence,  and  this  you  can  do  most  successfully  by 
exhibiting  its  effects. 

(6.)  Finally  let  me  insert  as  the  keystone  of  all  that  I 
have  been  saying  in  this  chapter,  be  sincere,  and  ardent, 
and  consistent,  in  your  own  piety.  The  whole  structure 
which  I  have  been  attempting  to  build,  will  tumble  into 


180  RELIGIOUS    INFLUENCE 

ruins  without  this.  Be  constantly  watchful  and  careful, 
not  only  to  maintain  intimate  communion  with  God,  and 
to  renew  it  daily  in  your  seasons  of  retirement,  but  guard 
your  conduct.  Let  piety  control  and  regulate  it.  Show 
your  pupils  that  it  makes  you  amiable,  patient,  forbearing, 
benevolent  in  little  things,  as  well  as  in  great  things,  and 
your  example  will  co-operate  with  your  instructions,  and 
allure  your  pupils  to  walk  in  the  paths  which  you  tread. 
But  no  clearness  and  faithfulness  in  religious  teaching  will 
atone  for  the  injury  which  a  bad  example  will  effect. 
Conduct  speaks  louder  than  words,  and  no  persons  are 
more  shrewd  than  the  young,  to  discover  the  hollowness 
of  empty  professions,  and  the  heartlessness  of  mere  pre- 
tended interest  in  their  good. 

I  am  aware  that  this  book  may  fall  into  the  hands  of 
some,  who  may  take  little  interest  in  the  subject  of  this 
chapter.  To  such  I  may  perhaps  owe  an  apology,  for 
having  thus  fully  discussed  a  topic,  in  which  only  a  part 
of  my  readers  can  be  supposed  to  be  interested.  My 
apology  is  this.  It  is  obvious  and  unquestionable  that  we 
all  owe  allegiance  to  the  Supreme.  It  is  so  obvious  and 
unquestionable,  as  to  be  entirely  beyond  the  necessity  of 
proof,  for  it  is  plain  that  nothing  but  such  a  bond  of  union, 
can  keep  the  peace,  among  the  millions  of  distinct  intelli- 
gences with  which  the  creation  is  filled.  It  is  therefore 
the  plain  duty  of  every  man,  to  establish  that  connexion 
between  himself  and  his  Maker,  which  the  Bible  requires, 
and  to  do  what  he  can  to  bring  others  to  the  peace  and 
happiness  of  piety.  These  truths  are  so  plain  that  they 
admit  of  no  discussion  and  no  denial,  and  it  seems  to  me 
highly  unsafe,  for  any  man  to  neglect  or  to  postpone  the 
performance  of  the  duty  which  arises  from  them.  A  still 
greater  hazard  is  incurred,  when  such  a  man  having  forty 
or  fifty  fellow  beings  almost  entirely  under  his  influence, 
leads  them,  by  his  example,  away  from  their  Maker,  and 
so  far,  that  he  must  in  many  cases  hopelessly  confirm  the 
separation.  With  these  views  I  could  not,  when  writing 
on  the  duties  of  a  teacher  of  the  young,  refrain  from  bring- 
ing distinctly  to  view,  this  which  has  so  imperious  a  claim. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

THE    MT.    VERNON    SCHOOL. 

THERE  is  perhaps  no  way,  by  which  teachers  can,  in  a 
given  time,  do  more  to  acquire  a  knowledge  of  their  art, 
and  an  interest  in  it,  than  by  visiting  each  others'  schools. 

It  is  not  always  the  case,  that  any  thing  is  observed  by 
the  visiter,  which  he  can  directly  and  wholly  introduce  into 
his  own  school;  but  what  he  sees,  suggests  to  him  modifi- 
cations or  changes,  and  it  gives  him,  at  any  rate,  renew- 
ed strength  and  resolution  in  his  work,  to  see  how  similar 
objects  are  accomplished,  or  similar  difficulties  removed, 
by  others.  I  have  often  thought,  that  there  ought  on  this 
account,  to  be  far  greater  freedom  and  frequency  in  the 
interchange  of  visits,  than  there  is. 

Next,  however,  to  a  visit  to  a  school,  comes  the  reading 
of  a  vivid  description  of  it.  I  do  not  mean  a  cold,  theo- 
retical exposition  of  the  general  principles  of  its  manage- 
ment and  instruction,  for  these  are  essentially  the  same, 
in  all  good  schools.  I  mean  a  minute  account  of  the  plans 
and  arrangements  by  which  these  general  principles  are 
applied.  Suppose  twenty,  of  the  most  successful  teachers 
in  New  England  would  write  such  a  description,  each  of 
his  own  school,  how  valuable  would  be  the  volume  which 
should  contain  them! 

With  these  views,  I  have  concluded  to  devote  one  chap- 
ter to  a  description  of  the  school  which  has  been  for  four 
years  under  my  care.  The  account  was  originally  pre- 
pared and  printed,  but  not  published,  for  the  purpose  of 
distribution  among  the  scholars,  simply  because  this  seem- 
ed to  be  the  easiest  and  surest  method  of  making  them, 
on  their  admission  to  the  school,  acquainted  with  its  ar- 

16 


182  MT.  VERNON  SCHOOL 

rangements  and  plans.  It  is  addressed,  therefore,  through- 
out, to  a  pupil,  and  I  preserve  its  original  form,  as,  by  its 
being  addressed  to  pupils,  and  intended  to  influence  them, 
it  is  an  example  of  the  mode  of  address,  and  the  kind  of  in- 
fluence recommended  in  this  work.  It  was  chiefly  design- 
ed for  new  scholars;  a  copy  of  it  was  presented  to  each, 
on  the  day  of  her  admission  to  the  school,  and  it  was  made 
her  first  duty  to  read  it  attentively. 

The  system  which  it  describes  is  one,  which  gradually 
grew  up  in  the  institution  under  the  writer's  care.  The 
school  was  commenced  with  a  small  number  of  pupils,  and 
without  any  system  or  plan  whatever,  and  the  one  here  de- 
scribed, was  formed  insensibly  and  by  slow  degrees,  through 
the  influence  of  various  and  accidental  circumstances.  I 
have  no  idea  that  it  is  superior  to  the  plans  of  govern- 
ment and  instruction  adopted  in  many  other  schools.  It  is 
true  that  there  must  necessarily  be  some  system  in  every 
large  school;  but  various  instructers  will  fall  upon  different 
principles  of  organization,  which  will  naturally  be  such  as 
are  adapted  to  the  habits  of  thought  and  manner  of  instruc- 
tion of  their  respective  authors,  and  consequently  each  will 
be  best  for  its  own  place.  While,  therefore,  some  system, 
— some  methodical  arrangement,  is  necessary  in  all  schools, 
it  is  not  necessary  that  it  should  be  the  same  in  all.  It 
is  not  even  desirable  that  it  should  be.  I  consider  this 
plan,  as  only  one  among  a  multitude  of  others,  each  of 
which  will  be  successful,  not  by  the  power  of  its  intrinsic 
qualities,  but  just  in  proportion  to  the  ability  and  faithful- 
ness with  which  it  is  carried  into  effect. 

There  may  be  features  of  this  plan,  which  teachers  who 
may  read  it,  may  be  inclined  to  adopt.  In  other  cases  sug- 
gestions may  occur  to  the  mind  of  the  reader,  which  may 
modify  in  some  degree  his  present  plans.  Others  may 
merely  be  interested  in  seeing  how  others  effect,  what  they, 
by  easy  methods,  are  equally  successful  in  effecting. 

It  is  in  these,  and  similar  ways,  that  I  have  often  myself 
been  highly  benefited  in  visiting  schools,  and  in  reading 
descriptions  of  them ;  and  it  is  for  such  purposes,  that  I  in- 
sert the  account  here. 


MT.  VERNON  SCHOOL  183 

TO    A    NEW    SCHOLAR,    ON    HER    ADMISSION    TO    THE 
MT.    VERNON    SCHOOL. 

As  a  large  school  is  necessarily  somewhat  complicated 
in  its  plan,  and  as  new  scholars  usually  find  that  it  requires 
some  time,  and  gives  them  no  little  trouble,  to  understand 
the  arrangements  they  find  in  operation  here,  I  have  con- 
cluded to  write  a  brief  description  of  these  arrangements, 
by  help  of  which,  you  will,  I  hope,  the  sooner  feel  at  home 
in  your  new  place  of  duty.  That  I  may  be  more  distinct 
and  specific,  I  shall  class  what  I  have  to  say,  under  sepa- 
rate heads. 

I.    YOUR    PERSONAL    DUTY. 

Your  first  anxiety  as  you  come  into  the  school-room,  and 
take  your  seat  among  the  busy  multitude,  if  you  are  con- 
scientiously desirous  of  doing  your  duty,  will  be,  lest,  igno- 
rant as  you  are  of  the  whole  plan  and  of  all  the  regulations 
of  the  institution,  you  should  inadvertently  do  what  will  be 
considered  wrong.  I  wish  first  then  to  put  you  at  rest  on 
this  score.  There  is  but  one  rule  of  this  school.  That  you 
can  easily  keep. 

You  will  observe  on  one  side  of  my  desk  a  clock  upon 
the  wall,  and  upon  the  other  a  piece  of  apparatus  that  is 
probably  new  to  you.  It  is  a  metallic  plate  upon  which  are 
marked  in  gilded  letters,  the  words  "  Study  Hours.19  This 
is  upright,  but  it  is  so  attached  by  its  lower  edge  to  its  sup- 
port, by  means  of  a  hinge,  that  it  can  fall  over  from  above, 
arid  thus  be  in  a  horizontal  position;  or  it  will  rest  in  an  in- 
clined position, — half  down,  as  it  is  called.  It  is  drawn  up 
and  let  down  by  a  cord  passing  over  a  pulley.  When  it 
passes  either  way,  its  upper  part  touches  a  bell,  which  gives 
all  in  the  room  notice  of  its  motion. 

Now  when  this  cc  Study  Card"*  as  the  scholars  call  it,  is 
up,  so  that  the  words  "  STUDY  HOURS"  are  presented  to  the 
view  of  the  school,  it  is  the  signal  for  silence  and  study. 
THERE  is  THEN  TO  BE  NO  COMMUNICATION  AND  NO  LEAV- 
ING OF  SEATS  EXCEPT  AT  THE  DIRECTION  OF  TEACHERS. 

*  This  apparatus  has  been  previously  described.    See  p.  40. 


184  MT.  VERNON  SCHOOL. 

When  it  is  half  down,  each  scholar  may  leave  her  seat  and 
whisper,  but  she  must  do  nothing  which  will  disturb  others. 
When  it  is  down,  all  the  duties  of  school  are  suspended  and 
scholars  are  left  entirely  to  their  liberty. 

As  this  is  the  only  rule  of  the  school,  it  deserves  a  little 
more  full  explanation;  for  not  only  your  progress  in  study, 
but  your  influence  in  promoting  the  welfare  of  the  school, 
and  consequently  your  peace  and  happiness  while  you  are 
a  member  of  it,  will  depend  upon  the  strictness  with  which 
you  observe  it. 

Whenever,  then,  the  study  card  goes  up,  and  you  hear 
the  sound  of  its  little  bell,  immediately  and  instantaneously 
stop,  whatever  you  are  saying.  If  you  are  away  from  your 
seat  go  directly  to  it,  and  there  remain,  and  forget  in  your 
own  silent  and  solitary  studies,  so  far  as  you  can,  all  that 
are  around  you.  You  will  remember  that  all  communica- 
tion is  forbidden.  Whispering,  making  signs,  writing  upon 
paper  or  a  slate,  bowing  to  any  one, — and  in  fact,  every 
possible  way,  by  which  one  person  may  have  any  sort  of 
mental  intercourse  with  another,  is  wrong.  A  large  num- 
ber of  the  scholars  take  a  pride  and  pleasure  in  carrying 
this  rule  into  as  perfect  an  observance  as  possible.  They 
say,  that  as  this  is  the  only  rule  with  which  I  trouble  them, 
they  ought  certainly  to  observe  this  faithfully.  I  myself 
however  put  it  upon  other  ground.  I  am  satisfied,  that  it 
is  better  and  pleasanter  for  you  to  observe  it  most  rigidly, 
if  it  is  attempted  to  be  enforced  at  all. 

You  will  ask,  "  Cannot  we  obtain  permission  of  you  or 
of  the  teachers  to  leave  our  seats  or  to  whisper,  if  it  is 
necessary?"  The  answer  is,  <c  No."  You  must  never  ask 
permission  of  me  or  of  the  teachers.  You  can  leave  seats 
or  speak  at  the  direction  of  the  teachers,  i.  e.  when  they  of 
their  own  accord,  ask  you  to  do  it,  but  you  are  never  to  ask 
their  permission.  If  you  should,  and  if  any  teachers  should 
give  you  permission,  it  would  be  of  no  avail.  I  have  nev- 
er given  them  authority  to  grant  any  permissions  of  the 
kind. 

You  will  then  say,  are  we  never  on  any  occasion  what- 
ever to  leave  our  seats  in  study  hours  ?  Yes  you  are. 
There  are  two  ways. 


MT.  VERNON  SCHOOL.  185 

1.  J\i  the  direction  of  teachers.     Going  to  and  from  reci- 
tations, is  considered  as  at  the  direction  of  teachers.     So 
if  a  person  is  requested  by  a  teacher  to  transact  any  busi- 
ness, or  is  elected  to  a  public  office,  or  appointed  upon  a 
committee, — leaving  seats  or  speaking,  so  far  as  is  really 
necessary  for  the  accomplishing  such  a  purpose,  is  consid- 
ered as  at  the  direction  of  teachers,  and  is  consequently 
right.     In  the  same  manner,  if  a  teacher  should  ask  you 
individually,  or  give  general  notice  to  the  members  of  a 
class  to  come  to  her  seat  for  private  instruction,  or  to  go 
to  any  part  of  the  school-room  for  her,  it  would  be  right 
to    do    it.     The    distinction,  you  observe,  is   this.     The 
teacher  may  of  her  own  accord,  direct  any  leaving  of  seats 
which  she  may  think  necessary  to  accomplish  the  objects 
of  the  school.     She  must  not  however,  at  the  request  of  an 
individual  for  the  sake  of  her  mere  private  convenience, 
give  her  permission  to  speak  or  to  leave  her  seat.     If  for 
example  a  teacher  should  say  to  you  in  your  class,  "  As 
soon  as  you  have  performed  a  certain  work  you  may  bring 
it  to  me,3' — you  would  in  bringing  it.  be  acting  under  her 
direction  and  would  consequently  do  right.     If  however 
you  should  want  a  pencil  and  should  ask  her  to  give  you 
leave  to  borrow  it,  even  if  she  should  give  you  leave,  you 
would  do  wrong  to  go,  for  you  would  not  be  acting  at 
her  direction,  but  simply  by  her  consent,  and  she   has   no 
authority  to  grant  consent. 

2.  The  second  case  in  which  you  may  leave  your  seat 
is  when   some  very  uncommon   occurrence   takes   place 
which  is  sufficient  reason  for  suspending  all    rules.     If 
your  neighbor  is  faint,  you  may  speak  to  her  and  if  ne- 
cessary lead  her  out.     If  your  mother  or  some  other  friend 
should  come  into  the  school-room  you  can  go  and  sit  with 
her  upon  the  sofa,  and  talk  about  the  school.     And  so  in 
many  other  similar  cases.     Be  very  careful  not  to  abuse 
this   privilege,   and   make  slight  causes    the  grounds  of 
your  exceptions.     It  ought  to  be  a  very  clear  case.     If 
a  young  lady  is  unwell  in  a  trifling  degree,  so  as  to  need 
no  assistance,  you  would  evidently  do  wrong  to  talk  to  her. 
The  rule,  in  fact,  is  very  similar  to  that  which  all  well 
bred   people  observe  at  church-     They  never   speak  or 

16* 


186  MT.    VERNON    SCHOOL 

leave  their  seats  unless  some  really  important  cause,  such 
as  sickness,  requires  them  to  break  over  all  rules  and  go 
out.  You  have  in  the  same  manner,  in  really  important 
cases,  such  as  serious  sickness  in  your  own  case  or  in  that 
of  your  companions,  or  the  coming  in  of  a  stranger,  or 
any  thing  else  equally  extraordinary,  power  to  lay  aside 
any  rule  and  to  act  as  the  emergency  may  require.  In 
using  this  discretion  however,  be  sure  to  be  on  the  safe 
side ;  in  such  cases  never  ask  permission.  You  must  act 
on  your  own  responsibility. 

Reasons  for  this  rule.  When  the  school  was  first  es- 
tablished, there  was  no  absolute  prohibition  of  whispering. 
Each  scholar  was  allowed  to  whisper  in  relation  to  her 
studies.  They  were  often,  very  often,  enjoined  to  be  con- 
scientious and  faithful,  but  as  might  have  been  anticipated, 
the  experiment  failed.  It  was  almost  universally  the  prac- 
tice to  whisper  more  or  less  about  subjects  entirely  for- 
eign to  the  business  of  the  school.  This  they  all  repeat- 
edly acknowledged;  and  the  scholars  almost  unanimously 
admitted,  that  the  good  of  the  school  required  the  pro- 
hibition of  all  communication  during  certain  hours.  I 
gave  them  their  choice,  either  always  to  ask  permission 
when  they  wished  to  speak,  or  to  have  a  certain  time 
allowed  for  the  purpose,  during  which  free  inter-commu- 
nication might  be  allowed  to  all  the  school; — with  the 
understanding,  however,  that  out  of  this  time,  no  permis- 
sion should  ever  be  asked  or  granted.  They  very  wisely 
chose  the  latter  plan,  and  the  study  card  was  constructed 
and  put  up  to  mark  the  times  of  free  communication,  and 
of  silent  study.  The  card  was  at  first  down  every  half 
hour  for  one  or  two  minutes.  The  scholars  afterwards 
thinking,  that  their  intellectual  habits  would  be  improved 
and  the  welfare  of  the  school  promoted,  by  their  having 
a  longer  time  for  uninterrupted  study,  of  their  own  ac- 
cord, without  any  influence  from  me,  proposed  that  the 
card  should  be  down  only  once  an  hour.  This  plan  was 
adopted  by  them,  by  vote.  I  wish  it  to  be  understood 
that  it  was  not  my  plan,  but  theirs,  and  that  I  am  at  any 
time  willing  to  have  the  study  card  down  once  in  half 
an  hour,  whenever  a  majority  of  the  scholars,  voting  by 
ballot,  desire  it 


MT.    VERNON    SCHOOL.  187 

You  will  find  that  this  system  of  having  a  distinct  time 
for  whispering,  when  all  rnay  whisper  freely,  all  commu- 
nication being  entirely  excluded  at  other  times,  will  at 
first  give  you  some  trouble.  It  will  be  hard  for  you,  if 
you  are  not  accustomed  to  it,  to  learn  conscientiously  and 
faithfully  to  comply.  Besides,  at  first  you  will  often  need 
some  little  information,  or  an  article  which  you  might 
obtain  in  a  moment,  but  which  you  cannot  innocently  ask 
for  till  the  card  is  down,  and  this  might  keep  you  waiting 
an  hour.  You  will,  however,  after  a  few  such  instances, 
soon  learn  to  make  your  preparations  before  hand,  and  if 
you  are  a  girl  of  enlarged  views  and  elevated  feelings, 
you  will  good  humoredly  acquiesce  in  suffering  a  little  in- 
convenience yourself,  for  the  sake  of  helping  to  preserve 
those  distinct  and  well  defined  lines,  by  which  all  bounda- 
ries must  be  marked,  in  a  large  establishment,  if  order 
and  system  are  to  be  preserved  at  all. 

Though  at  first  you  may  experience  a  little  incon- 
venience, you  will  soon  take  pleasure  in  the  scientific 
strictness  of  the  plan.  It  will  gratify  you  to  observe  the 
profound  stillness  of  the  room  where  a  hundred  are  study- 
ing. You  will  take  pleasure  in  observing  the  sudden  tran- 
sition from  the  silence  of  study  hours  to  the  joyful  sounds, 
and  the  animating  activity  of  recess,  when  the  Study  Card 
goes  down;  and  then  when  it  rises  again  at  the  close  of 
the  recess,  you  will  be  gratified  to  observe  how  suddenly 
the  sounds  which  have  rilled  the  air  and  made  the  room 
so  lively  a  scene  are  hushed  into  silence  by  the  single 
and  almost  inaudible  touch  of  that  little  bell.  You  will 
take  pleasure  in  this,  for  young  and  old  always  take  plea- 
sure in  the  strict  and  rigid  operation  of  system,  rather  than 
in  laxity  and  disorder.  I  am  convinced  also  that  the 
scholars  do  like  the  operation  of  this  plan  for  I  do  not 
have  to  make  any  efforts  to  sustain  it.  With  the  excep- 
tion that  occasionally,  usually  not  oftener  than  once  in 
several  months,  I  allude  to  the  subject,  and  that  chiefly 
on  account  of  a  few  careless  and  unfaithful  individuals, 
I  have  little  to  say  or  to  do  to  maintain  the  authority 
of  the  study  card.  Most  of  the  scholars  obey  it  of 
their  own  accord,  implicitly  and  cordially/  And  I  believe 


188  MT.    VERNON    SCHOOL. 

they  consider  this  faithful  monitor,  not  only  one  of  the 
most  useful,  but  one  of  the  most  agreeable  friends  they 
have.  We  should  not  only  regret  its  services,  but  miss 
its  company,  if  it  should  be  taken  away. 

This  regulation  then,  viz.,  to  abstain  from  all  commu 
nication  with  one  another,  and  from  all  leaving  of  seats, 
at  certain  times  which  are  marked  by  the  position  of  the 
Study  Card,  is  the  only  one  which  can  properly  be  called 
a  rule  of  the  school.  There  are  a  great  many  arrange- 
ments and  plans  relating  to  the  instruction  of  the  pupils, 
but  no  other  specific  rules  relating  to  their  conduct.  You 
are,  of  course,  while  in  the  school,  under  the  same  moral 
obligations  which  rest  upon  you  elsewhere.  You  must 
be  kind  to  one  another,  respectful  to  superiors,  and  quiet 
and  orderly  in  your  deportment.  You  must  do  nothing 
to  encroach  upon  another's  rights,  or  to  interrupt  and  dis- 
turb your  companions  in  their  pursuits.  You  must  not 
produce  disorder,  or  be  wasteful  of  the  public  property, 
or  do  any  thing  else  which  you  might  know  is  in  itself 
wrong.  But  you  are  to  avoid  these  things,  not  because 
there  are  any  rules  in  this  school  against  them,  for  there 
are  none; — but  because  they  are  in  themselves  wrong; — 
in  all  places  and  under  all  circumstances,  wrong.  The 
universal  and  unchangeable  principles  of  duty  are  the 
same  here  as  elsewhere.  I  do  not  make  rules  pointing 
them  out,  but  expect  that  you  will,  through  your  own 
conscience  and  moral  principle,  discover  and  obey  them. 

Such  a  case  as  this,  for  example,  once  occurred.  A 
number  of  little  girls  began  to  amuse  themselves  in  recess 
with  running  about  among  the  desks  in  pursuit  of  one 
another,  and  they  told  me,  in  excuse  for  it,  that  they  did 
not  know  that  it  was  "  against  the  rule." 

"It  is  not  against  the  rule;  "  said  I,  "I  have  never 
made  any  rule  against  running  about  among  the  desks." 

"  Then,"  asked  they,  "  did  we  do  wrong?  " 

"  Do  you  think  it  would  be  a  good  plan,"  I  inquired, 
"to  have  it  a  common  amusement  in  the  recess,  for  the 
girls  to  hunt  each  other  among  the  desks?  " 

"  No  sir,"  they  replied  simultaneously. 

"  Why  not  ?     There  are  some  reasons.     I  do  not  know, 


MT.    VERNON    SCHOOL.  189 

however  whether  you  will  have  the  ingenuity  to  think  of 
them." 

"  We  may  start  the  desks  from  their  places,"  said  one. 

"  Yes,"  said  I,  "  they  are  fastened  down  very  slightly, 
so  that  I  may  easily  alter  their  position." 

"  We  might  upset  the  inkstands,"  said  another. 

"  Sometimes,"  added  a  third,  "  we  run  against  the  schol- 
ars who  are  sitting  in  their  seats." 

"  It  seems  then  you  have  ingenuity  enough  to  discover 
the  reasons.  Why  did  not  these  reasons  prevent  your 
doing  it." 

"  We  did  not  think  of  them  before." 

"True;  that  is  the  exact  state  of  the  case.  Now  when 
persons  are  so  eager  to  promote  their  own  enjoyment,  as 
to  forget  the  rights  and  the  comforts  of  others,  it  is  selfish- 
ness. Now  is  there  any  rule  in  this  school  against  self- 
ishness." 

"  No  sir." 

"You  are  right.  There  is  not.  But' selfishness  is 
wrong, — very  wrong,  in  whatever  form  it  appears, — here, 
and  every  where  else;  and  that,  whether  I  make  any  rules 
against  it  or  not." 

You  will  see  from  this  anecdote  that  though  there  is 
but  one  rule  of  the  school,  I  by  no  means  intend  to  say 
that  there  is  only  one  way  cf  doing  wrong  here.  That  would 
be  very  absurd.  You  must  not  do  any  thing  which  you  may 
know,  by  proper  reflection,  to  be  in  its  elf  wrong.  This  how- 
ever is  an  universal  principle  of  duty,  not  a  rule  of  the  Mt. 
Vernon  School.  If  I  should  attempt  to  make  rules  which 
would  specify  arid  prohibit  every  possible  way  by  which 
you  might  do  wrong,  my  laws  would  be  innumerable.  And 
even  then  I  should  fail  of  securing  my  object,  unless  you 
had  the  disposition  to  do  your  duty.  No  legislation  can 
enact  laws  as  fast  as  a  perverted  ingenuity  can  find  means 
to  evade  them. 

You  will  perhaps  ask  what  will  be  the  consequence  if 
we  transgress,  either  the  single  rule  of  the  school,  or  any 
of  the  great  principles  of  duty.  In  other  words  what  are 
the  punishments  which  are  resorted  to  in  the  Mt.  Vernon 
School?  The  answer  is  there  are  no  punishments.  I  do 


190  MT.    VERNON    SCHOOL 

not  say  that  I  should  not,  in  case  all  other  means  should 
fail,  resort  to  the  most  decisive  measures  to  secure  obedi- 
ence and  subordination.  Most  certainly,  I  should  do  so, 
as  it  would  plainly  be  my  duty  to  do  it.  If  you  should  at 
any  time  be  so  unhappy  as  to  violate  your  obligations  to 
yourself,  to  your  companions,  or  to  me, — should  you  mis- 
improve  your  time,  or  exhibit  an  unkind  or  a  selfish  spirit, 
or  be  disrespectful  or  insubordinate  to  your  teachers, — I 
should  go  frankly  and  openly,  but  kindly  to  you,  and  en- 
deavor to  convince  you  of  your  fault.  I  should  very  proba- 
bly do  this  by  addressing  a  note  to  you,  as  I  suppose  this 
should  be  less  unpleasant  to  you  than  a  conversation.  In 
such  a  case,  I  shall  hope  that  you  will  as  frankly  and  open- 
ly reply;  telling  me  whether  you  admit  your  fault  and  are 
determined  to  amend,  or  else  informing  me  of  the  contra- 
ry. I  shall  wish  you  to  be  sincere,  and  then  I  shall  know 
what  course  to  take  next.  But  as  to  the  consequences 
which  may  result  to  you  if  you  should  persist  in  what  is 
wrong,  it  is  not  necessary  that  you  should  know  them 
before  hand.  They  who  wander  from  duty,  always  plunge 
themselves  into  troubles  they  do  not  anticipate ;  and  if  you 
do  what,  at  the  time  you  are  doing  it,  you  know  to  be 
wrong,  it  will  not  be  unjust  that  you  should  suffer  the  con- 
sequences, even  if  they  were  not  beforehand  understood 
and  expected.  This  will  be  the  case  with  you  all  through 
life,  and  it  will  be  the  case  here. 

I  say  it  will  be  the  case  here;  I  ought  rather  to  say  that 
it  will  be  the  case,  should  you  be  so  unhappy  as  to  do  wrong 
and  to  persist  in  it.  Such  cases  however  never  occur.  At 
least  they  occur  so  seldom,  and  at  intervals  so  great,  that 
every  thing  of  the  nature  of  punishment,  that  is,  the  de- 
priving a  pupil  of  any  enjoyment,  or  subjecting  her  to  any 
disgrace,  or  giving  her  pain  in  any  way  in  consequence 
of  her  faultSj  except  the  simple  pain  of  awakening  con- 
science in  her  bosom  is  almost  entirely  unknown.  I  hope 
that  you  will  always  be  ready  to  confess  and  forsake  your 
faults,  and  endeavor  while  you  remain  in  school,  to  im- 
prove in  character,  and  attain  as  far  as  possible,  every 
moral  excellence. 

I  ought  to  remark  before  dismissing  this  topic,  that  I 


MT.    VERNON    SCHOOL.  191 

place  very  great  confidence  in  the  scholars  in  regard  to 
their  moral  conduct  and  deportment,  and  they  fully  de- 
serve it.  I  have  no  care  and  no  trouble  in  what  is  com- 
monly called  the  government  of  the  school.  Neither  myself 
nor  any  one  else  is  employed  in  any  way  in  watching  the 
scholars,  or  keeping  any  sort  of  account  of  them.  I  should 
not  at  any  time  hesitate  to  call  all  the  teachers  in  an  ad- 
joining room,  leaving  the  school  alone  for  half  an  hour, 
and  I  should  be  confident,  that  at  such  a  time  order,  and 
stillness,  and  attention  to  study  would  prevail  as  much  as 
ever.  The  scholars  would  not  look  to  see  whether  I  was 
in  my  desk,  but  whether  the  Study  Card  was  up.  The 
school  was  left  in  this  way,  half  an  hour  every  day,  during 
a  quarter,  that  we  might  have  a  teachers'  meeting,  and 
the  school  went  on,  generally  quite  as  well,  to  say  the 
least,  as  when  the  teachers  were  present.  One  or  two 
instances  of  irregular  conduct  occurred.  I  do  not  now 
recollect  precisely  what  they  were.  They  were  however, 
fully  acknowledged  and  not  repeated,  and  I  believe  the 
scholars  were  generally  more  scrupulous  and  faithful  then 
than  at  other  times.  They  would  not  betray  the  confi- 
dence reposed  in  them.  This  plan  was  continued  until  it 
was  found  more  convenient  to  have  the  teachers'  meeting 
in  the  afternoons. 

When  any  thing  wrong  is  done  in  school,  I  generally 
state  the  case  and  request  the  individuals  who  have  done 
it  to  let  me  know  who  they  are.  They  do  it  sometimes  by 
notes  and  sometimes  in  conversation, — but  they  always  do 
it.  The  plan  always  succeeds.  The  scholars  all  know 
that  there  is  nothing  to  be  feared  from  confessing  faults  to 
me; — but  that  on  the  other  hand,  it  is  a  most  direct  and 
certain  way  to  secure  returning  peace  and  happiness. 

I  can  illustrate  this  by  describing  a  case  which  actually 
occurred.  Though  the  description  is  not  to  be  consid- 
ered so  much  an  accurate  account  of  what  occurred  in  a 
particular  case,  as  an  illustration  of  the  general  spirit  and 
manner  in  which  such  cases  are  disposed  of.  I  accident- 
ally understood,  that  some  of  the  younger  scholars  were 
in  the  habit,  during  recesses  and  after  school,  of  ringing 
the  door  bell  and  then  running  away,  to  amuse  themselves 


192  MT.    VERNON    SCHOOL. 

with  the  perplexity  of  their  companions,  who  should  go  to 
the  door  and  find  no  one  there.  I  explained  in  a  few 
words,  one  day,  to  the  school,  that  this  was  wrong. 

"  How  many,"  I  then  asked, "  have  ever  been  put  to 
the  trouble  to  go  to  the  door,  when  the  bell  has  thus  been 
rung?  They  may  rise." 

A  very  large  number  of  scholars  stood  up.  Those  who 
had  done  the  mischief  were  evidently  surprised  at  the  ex- 
tent of  the  trouble  they  had  occasioned. 

"Now,"  I  continued,  "  I  think  all  will  be  convinced 
that  the  trouble  which  this  practice  has  occasioned  to  the 
fifty  or  sixty  young  ladies,  who  cannot  be  expected  to  find 
amusement  in  such  a  way,  is  far  greater  than  the  pleasure 
it  can  have  given  to  the  few  who  are  young  enough  to 
have  enjoyed  it.  Therefore  it  was  wrong.  Do  you  think 
the  girls  who  rang  the  bell  might  have  known  this,  by 
proper  reflection?  " 

'  Yes  sir,"  the  school  generally  answered. 

1  I  do  not  mean,"  said  I,  "if  they  had  set  them- 
selves formally  at  work  to  think  about  the  subject;  but 
with  such  a  degree  of  reflection  as  ought  reasonably  to 
be  expected  of  little  girls,  in  the  hilarity  of  recess  and 
of  play. 

"  Yes  sir,"  was  still  the  reply,  but  fainter  than  before. 

"There  is  one  way  by  which  I  might  ascertain  wheth- 
er you  were  old  enough  to  know  that  this  was  wrong,  and 
that  is  by  asking  those  who  have  refrained  from  doing  this, 
because  they  supposed  it  would  be  wrong,  to  rise.  Then 
if  some  of  the  youngest  scholars  in  school  should  stand  up, 
as  I  have  no  doubt  they  would,  it  would  prove  that  all  might 
have  known,  if  they  had  been  equally  conscientious.  But 
if  I  ask  those  to  rise  who  have  not  rung  the  bell,  I  shall 
make  known  to  the  whole  school  who  they  are  that  have 
done  it,  and  I  wish  that  the  exposure  of  faults  should  be 
private,  unless  it  is  necessary  that  it  should  be  public.  I 
will  therefore  not  do  it.  I  have  myself  however,  no  doubt 
that  all  might  have  known  that  it  was  wrong." 

"There  is,"  continued  I,  "another  injury  which  must 
grow  out  of  such  a  practice.  This  I  should  not  have 
expected  the  little  girls  could  think  of.  In  fact,  I  doubt 


MT.    VERNON    SCHOOL.  193 

whether  any  in  school  will  think  of  it.  Can  any  one  tell 
what  it  is?" 

No  one  replied. 

"  I  should  suppose  that  it  would  lead  you  to  disregard 
the  bell  when  it  rings,  and  that  consequently  a  gentleman 
or  lady  might  sometimes  ring  in  vain;  the  scholars  near 
the  door,  saying,  '  Oh  it  is  only  the  little  girls.5  ' 

"  Yes  sir,"  was  heard  from  all  parts  of  the  room. 

I  found  from  farther  inquiry  that  this  had  been  the 
case,  and  I  closed  by  saying, 

"  I  am  satisfied,  that  those  who  have  inadvertently  fall- 
en into  this  practice  are  sorry  for  it,  and  that  if  I  should 
leave  it  here,  no  more  cases  of  it  would  occur,  and  this  is 
all  I  wish.  At  the  same  time,  they  who  have  done  this, 
will  feel  more  effectually  relieved  from  the  pain  which 
having  done  wrong  must  necessarily  give  them,  if  they 
individually  acknowledge  it  to  me.  I  wish  therefore  that 
all  who  have  done  so,  would  write  me  notes  stating  the 
facts.  If  any  one  does  not  do  it,  she  will  punish  herself 
severely,  for  she  will  feel  for  many  days  to  come,  that 
while  her  companions  were  willing  to  acknowledge  their 
faults,  she  wished  to  conceal  and  cover  hers.  Conscience 
will  reproach  her  bitterly  for  her  insincerity,  and  when- 
ever she  hears  the  sound  of  the  door  bell,  it  will  remind  her 
not  only  of  her  fault,  but  of  what  is  far  worse  her  willing- 
ness to  appear  innocent  when  she  was  really  guilty." 

Before  the  close  of  the  school  I  had  eight  or  ten  notes 
acknowledging  the  fault,  describing  the  circumstances  of 
each  case,  and  expressing  promises  to  do  so  no  more. 

It  is  by  such  methods  as  this,  rather  than  by  threaten- 
ing and  punishment,  that  I  manage  the  cases  of  discipline 
which  from  time  to  time  occur,  but  even  such  as  this,  slight 
as  it  is,  occur  very  seldom.  Weeks  and  weeks  sometimes 
elapse  without  one.  When  they  do  occur  they  are  always 
easily  settled  by  confession  and  reform.  Sometimes  I  am 
asked  to  forgive  the  offenoe.  But  I  never  forgive.  I  have 
no  power  to  forgive.  God  must  forgive  you  when  you  do 
wrong,  or  the  burden  must  remain.  My  duty  is,  to  take 
measures  to  prevent  future  transgression^  and  to  lead  those 
who  have  been  guilty  of  it,  to  God  for  pardon.  If  thej 

17 


194  MT.    VERNON    SCHOOL 

do  not  go  to  him,  though  they  may  satisfy  me,  as  principal 
of  a  school,  by  not  repeating  the  offence, — they  must  re- 
main unforgiven.  I  can  forget,  and  I  do  forget.  For 
example,  in  this  last  case,  1  have  not  the  slightest  recol- 
lection of  any  individual  who  was  engaged  in  it.  The 
evil  was  entirely  removed,  and  had  it  not  afforded  me  a 
convenient  illustration  here,  perhaps  I  should  never  have 
thought  of  it  again, — still  it  may  not  yet  be  forgiven.  It 
may  seem  strange  that  I  should  speak  so  seriously  of 
God's  forgiveness  for  such  a  trifle  as  that.  Does  he  notice 
a  child's  ringing  a  door  bell  in  play?  He  notices  when  a 
child  is  willing  to  yield  to  temptation,  to  do  what  she  knows 
to  be  wrong,  and  to  act,  even  in  the  slightest  trifle,  from  a 
selfish  disregard  for  the  convenience  of  others.  This  spirit 
he  always  notices,  and  though  I  may  stop  any  particular 
form  of  its  exhibition,  it  is  for  Him  alone  to  forgive  it  and 
to  purify  the  heart  from  its  power.  But-I  shall  speak  more 
particularly  on  this  subject  under  the  head  of  Religious 
Instruction. 


II.       ORDER    OF    DAILY    EXERCISES. 

There  will  be  given  you  when  you  enter  the  school  a 
blank  schedule,  in  which  the  divisions  of  each. forenoon 
for  one  week  are  marked,  and  in  which  your  own  employ- 
ments for  every  half  hour  are  to  be  written.  A  copy  of 
this  is  inserted  on  page  196. 

This  schedule,  when  filled  up,  forms  a  sort  of  a  map  of 
the  week,  in  which  you  can  readily  find  what  are  your 
duties  for  any  particular  time.  The  following  description 
will  enable  you  better  to  understand  it. 


Opening  of  the  School. 

The  first  thing  which  will  call  your  attention  as  the  hour 
for  the  commencement  of  the  school  approaches  in  the 
morning,  is  the  ringing  of  a  bell,  five  minutes  before  the 


MT.    VERNON    SCHOOL.  195 

\ 

time  arrives,  by  the  regulator,  who  sists  at  the  curtained 
desk  before  the  Study  Card.  One  minute  before  the  time, 
the  bell  is  rung  again,  which  is  the  signal  for  all  to  take 
their  seats  and  prepare  for  the  opening  of  the  school. 
When  the  precise  moment  arrives,  the  Study  Card  is 
drawn  up,  and  at  the  sound  of  its  little  bell,  all  the  schol- 
ars recline  their  heads  upon  their  desks  and  unite  with  me 
in  a  very  short  prayer  for  God's  protection  and  blessing 
during  the  day.  I  adopted  the  plan  of  allowing  the  schol- 
ars to  sit,  because  I  thought  it  would  be  pleasanter  for 
them,  and  they  have  in  return  been  generally,  so  far  as  I 
know,  faithful  in  complying  with  my  wish  that  they  would 
all  assume  the  posture  proposed,  so  that  the  school  may 
present  the  uniform  and  serious  aspect  which  is  proper, 
when  we  are  engaged  in  so  solemn  a  duty.  If  you  move 
your  chair  back  a  little,  you  will  find  the  posture  not.  incon- 
venient, but  the  only  reward  you  will  have  for  faithfully 
complying  with  the  general  custom  is  the  pleasure  of 
doing  your  duty,  for  no  one  watches  you,  and  you  would 
not  be  called  to  account  should  you  neglect  to  conform. 

After  the  prayer  we  sing  one  or  two  verses  of  a  hymn. 
The  music  is  led  by  the  piano,  and  we  wish  all  to  join  in  it 
who  can  sing.  The  exercises  which  follow  are  exhibited 
to  the  eye  by  the  following  diagram. 


196 


MT.    VERNON    SCHOOL. 


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02 

MT.    VERNON    SCHOOL.  197 

First  Hour. — Evening  Lessons. 
(See  plan;  page  196.) 

We  then,  as  you  will  see  by  the  schedule,  commence 
the  first  hour  of  the  day.  It  is  marked  evening  lessons, 
because  most,  though  not  all,  of  the  studies  are  intended 
to  be  prepared  out  of  school.  These  studies  are  miscella- 
neous in  their  character,  comprising  Geography,  History, 
Natural  and  Intellectual  Philosophy,  and  Natural  His- 
tory. This  hour,  like  all  the  other  hours  for  study,  is 
divided  into  two  equal  parts,  some  classes  reciting  in  the 
first  part,  and  others  in  the  second.  A  bell  is  always  rung 
Jive  minutes  before  the  time  for  closing  the  recitation,  to 
give  the  teachers  notice  that  their  time  is  nearly  expired, 
and  then  again  at  the  time,  to  give  notice  to  new  classes 
to  take  their  places.  Thus  you  will  observe  that  five 
minutes  before  the  half  hour  expires,  the  bell  will  ring; 
soon  after  which  the  classes  in  recitation  will  take  their 
seats.  Precisely  at  the  end  of  the  half  hour,  it  will  ring 
again,  when  new  classes  will  take  their  places.  In  the 
same  manner  notice  is  given  five  minutes  before  the  sec- 
ond half  of  the  hour  expires,  and  so  in  all  the  other  three 
hours. 

At  the  end  of  the  first  hour,  the  Study  Card  will  be  let 
half  down,  five  minutes,  and  you  will  perceive  that  the 
sound  of  its  bell  will  immediately  produce  a  decided  change 
in  the  whole  aspect  of  the  room.  It  is  the  signal,  as  has 
been  before  explained,  for  universal  permission  to  whisper, 
and  to  leave  seats,  though  not  for  loud  talking  or  play,  so 
that  those  who  wish  to  continue  their  studies  may  do  so 
without  interruption.  When  the  five  minutes  has  expired, 
the  Card  goes  up  again,  and  its  sound  immediately  restores 
silence  and  order. 

17* 


198  MT.    VERNON    SCHOOL. 


Second  How\ — Languages 

(See  plan.) 

We  then  commence  the  second  hour  of  the  school. 
This  is  devoted  to  the  study  of  the  Languages.  The 
Latin,  French,  and  English  classes  recite  at  this  time. 
By  English  classes  I  mean  those  studying  the  English  as 
a  language,  i.  e?  classes  in  Grammar,  Rhetoric,  and  Com- 
position. The  hour  is  divided  as  the  first  hour  is,  and  the 
bell  is  rung  in  the  same  way,  i.  e.  at  the  close  of  each 
half  hour,  and  also  five  minutes  before  the  close,  to  give 
the  classes  notice  that  the  time  for  recitation  is  about  to 
expire. 


First  General  Exercise. 

(Sec  Plan  ) 

You  will  observe  then,  that  there  follows  upon  the  sche- 
dule, a  quarter  of  an  hour  marked  G.  That  initial  stands 
for  General  Exercise,  and  when  it  arrives  each  pupil  is  to 
lay  aside  her  work,  and  attend  to  any  exercise  which  may 
be  proposed.  This  quarter  of  an  hour  is  appropriated  to 
a  great  variety  of  purposes.  Sometimes  I  give  a  short 
and  familiar  lecture  on  some  useful  subject  connected  with 
science  or  art,  or  the  principles  of  duty.  Sometimes  we 
have  a  general  reading  lesson.  Sometimes  we  turn  the 
school  into  a  Bible  class.  Again  the  time  is  occupied  in 
attending  to  some  general  business  of  the  school.  The 
bell  is  rung  one  minute  before  the  close  of  the  time,  and 
when  the  period  appropriated  to  this  purpose  has  actually 
expired,  the  Study  Card,  for  the  first  time  in  the  morning, 
is  let  entirely  down,  and  the  room  is  at  once  suddenly 
transformed  into  a  scene  of  life  and  motion  and  gaiety. 


MT.    VERNON    SCHOOL.  99 


First  Recess. 

(See  plan.) 

The  time  For  the  recess  is  a  quarter  of  an  hour,  and  as 
you  will  see,  it  is  marked  R,  on  the  schedule.  We  have 
various  modes  of  amusing  ourselves  and  finding  exercise 
and  recreation  in  recesses.  Sometimes  the  girls  bring 
their  battledoors  to  school.  Sometimes  they  have  a  large 
number  of  soft  ball's,  with  which  they  amuse  themselves. 
A  more  common  amusement  is  marching  to  the  music  of 
the  piano.  For  this  purpose,  a  set  of  signals  by  the  whis- 
tle has  been  devised,  by  which  commands  are  communi- 
cated to  the  school. 

In  these  and  similar  amusements  the  recess  passes  away, 
and  one  minute  before  it  expires  the  bell  is  rung,  to  give 
notice  of  the  approach  of  study  hours. 

At  this  signal  the  scholars  begin  to  prepare  for  a  return 
to  the  ordinary  duties  of  school,  and  when  at  the  full 
expiration  of  the  recess,  the  Study  Card  again  goes  up, 
silence,  and  attention,  and  order  is  immediately  restored. 


Third  Hour. — Mathematics. 
(See  plan.) 

There  follows  next,  as  you  will  see  by  reference  to  the 
schedule,  an  hour  marked  Mathematics.  It  is  time  for 
studying  and  reciting  Arithmetic,  Algebra,  Geometry  and 
similar  studies.  It  is  divided  as  the  previous  hours  were, 
into  two  equal  parts,  and  the  bell  is  rung  as  has  been 
described,  five  minutes  before  the  close,  and  precisely  at 
the  close  of  each  half  hour. 


200  MT.    VERNON    SCHOOL. 


Second  General  Exercise. — Business. 

(See  plan.) 

Then  follows  two  quarter  hours,  appropriated  like  those 
heretofore  described^  the  first  to  a  General  Exercise,  the 
second  to  a  Recess.  At  the  first  of  these,  the  general 
business  of  the  school  is  transacted.  As  this  business  will 
probably  appear  new  to  you,  and  will  attract  your  atten- 
tion, I  will  describe  its  nature  and  design. 

At  first  you  will  observe  a  young  lady  rise  at  the  sec- 
retary's desk,  to  read  a  journal  of  what  was  done  the  day 
before.  The  notices  which  I  gave, — the  arrangements  I 
made, — the  subjects  discussed  and  decided, — and  in  fact 
every  thing  important  and  interesting  in  the  business  or 
occurrences  of  the  preceding  day — is  recorded  by  the  sec- 
retary of  the  school,  and  read  at  this  time.  This  journal 
ought  not  to  be  a  mere  dry  record  of  votes  and  business, 
but  as  far  as  possible,  an  interesting  description  in  a  nar- 
rative style,  of  the  occurrences  of  the  day.  The  Secre- 
tary must  keep  a  memorandum,  and  ascertain  that  every 
thing  important  really  finds  a  place  in  the  record,  but  she 
may  employ  any  good  writer  in  school  to  prepare,  from 
her  minutes,  the  full  account. 

After  the  record  is  read,  you  will  observe  me  take  from 
a  little  red  morocco  wrapper,  which  has  been  brought  to 
my  desk,  a  number  of  narrow  slips  of  paper,  which  I  am 
to  read  aloud.  In  most  assemblies  it  is  customary  for  any 
person  wishing  it,  to  rise  in  his  place,  and  propose  any 
plan,  or  as  it  is  called,  "  make  any  motion"  that  he  plea- 
ses. It  would  be  unpleasant  for  a  young  lady  to  do  this, 
in  presence  of  a  hundred  companions,  arid  we  have  con-, 
sequently  resorted  to  another  plan.  The  red  wrapper  is 
placed  in  a  part  of  the  room,  accessible  to  all,  and  any 
one  who  pleases,  writes  upon  a  narrow  slip  of  paper  any- 
thing she  wishes  to  lay  before  the  school,  and  deposits  it 
there,  and  at  the  appointed  time,  the  whole  are  Drought 
to  me.  These  propositions  ar«  of  various  kinds.  I  can 


MT.    VERNON    SCHOOL.  201 

perhaps  best  give  you  an  idea  of  them,  by  such  specimens 
as  occur  to  me. 

"  A.  B.  resigns  her  office  of  copyist,  as  she  is  about  to  leave  school." 

"  Proposed,  that  a  class  in  Botany  be  formed.  There  are  many  who 
would  like  to  join  it." 

"  When  will  vacation  commence  ?" 

"  Proposed,  That  a  music  committee  be  appointed,  so  that  we  can 
have  some  marching  in  recess." 

"  Proposed  that  school  begin  at  nine  o'clock." 

"  Mr.  A.bbott.  Will  you  have  the  goodness  to  explain  to  us  what 
is  meant  by  the  Veto  Message." 

"  Proposed  that  we  have  locks  upon  our  desks." 

You  see  that  the  variety  is  very  great,  and  there  are 
usually  from  four  or  five  to  ten  or  fifteen  of  such  papers 
daily.  You  will  be  at  liberty  to  make  in  this  way,  any 
suggestion  or  inquiry,  or  to  propose  any  change  you  please 
in  any  part  of  the  instruction  or  administration  of  the 
school.  If  any  thing  dissatisfies  you,  you  ought  not  to 
murmur  at  it  in  private,  or  complain  of  it  to  your  compan- 
ions, thus  injuring,  to  no  purpose,  both  your  own  peace 
and  happiness  and  theirs, — but  you  ought  immediately  to 
bring  up  the  subject  in  the  way  above  described,  that  the 
evil  may  be  removed.  I  receive  some  of  the  most  valua- 
ble suggestions  in  this  way,  from  the  older  and  more  re- 
flecting pupils.  These  suggestions  are  read.  Sometimes 
I  decide  myself.  Sometimes  I  say  the  pupils  may  decide. 
Sometimes  I  ask  their  opinion  and  wishes,  and  then,  after 
taking  them  into  consideration,  come  to  a  conclusion. 

For  example,  I  will  insert  a  few  of  these  propositions, 
as  these  pa.pers  are  called,  describing  the  way  in  which 
they  would  be  disposed  of.  Most  of  them  are  real  cases. 

<4  Mr.  Abbott.  The  first  class  in  Geography  is  so  large  that  we 
have  not  room  in  the  recitation  seats.  Cannot  we  have  another 
place  ?" 

After  reading  this,  I  should  perhaps  say, 
"  The  class  in  Geography  may  rise  and  be  counted." 
They  rise.     Those  in  each  division  are  counted  by  the 
proper  officer,  as  will  hereafter  be  explained,  and  the  num- 


MT     VERNON   SCHOOL. 

bers  are  reported  aloud  to  me.  It  is  all  done  in  a  mo- 
ment. 

"  How  many  of  you  think  you  need  better  accommo- 
dations^" 

If  a  majority  of  hands  are  raised,  I  say, 

"  I  wish  the  teacher  of  that  class  would  ascertain  wheth- 
er any  other  place  of  recitation  is  vacant,  or  occupied  by 
a  smaller  class  at  that  time,  and  report  the  case  to  me." 

"  Proposed,  that  we  be  allowed  to  walk  upon  the  common  in  the 


<c  I  should  like  to  have  some  plan  formed,  by  which  you 
can  walk  on  the  common  in  recesses,  but  there  are  diffi- 
culties. If  all  should  go  out  together,  it  is  probable  that 
some  would  be  rude  and  •  noisy,  and  that  others  would 
come  back  tardy  and  out  of  breath.  Besides,  as  the  re- 
cess is  short,  so  many  would  be  in  haste  to  prepare  to  go 
out,  that  there  would  be  a  great  crowd  and  much  confu- 
sion in  the  Ante-room  and  passage  ways.  I  do  not  men- 
tion these  as  insuperable  objections,  but  only  as  difficul- 
ties which  there  must  be  some  plan  to  avoid.  Perhaps, 
however,  they  cannot  be  avoided.  Do  any  of  you  think 
of  any  plan?" 

I  see  perhaps  two  or  three  hands  raised,  and  call  upon 
the  individuals  by  name,  and  they  express  their  opinions. 
One  says  that  a  part  can  go  out  at. a  time.  Another  pro- 
poses that  those  who  are  tardy  one  day  should  not  go  out 
again,  &c. 

"  I  think  it  possible  that  a  plan  can  be  formed  on  these 
or  some  such  principles.  If  you  will  appoint  a  committee 
who  will  prepare  a  plan,  and  mature  its  details,  and  take 
charge  of  the  execution  of  it,  you  may  try  the  experiment. 
I  will  allow  it  to  go  on  as  long  as  you  avoid  the  evils  I 
have  above  alluded  to." 

A  committee  is  then  raised  to  report  in  writing  at  the 
business  hour  of  the  following  day. 

"  Proposed,  that  the  Study  Card  be  down  every  half  hour." 

You  may  decide  this  question  yourselves.  That  you 
may  vote  more  freely,  I  wish  you  to  vote  by  ballot.  The 


MT.  vrnxov  SCHOOL.  203 

boxes  will  be  open  during  the  next  recess.  The  Vote- 
Receivers  will  write  the  question,  and  place  it  upon  the 
boxes.  All  who  feel  interested  in  the  subject,  may  carry 
in  their  votes,  Ay  or  Nay.  When  the  result  is  reported 
to  me  I  will  read  it  to  the  school." 

In  this  and  similar  ways  the  various  business  brought 
up  is  disposed  of.  This  custom  is  useful  to  the  scholars, 
for  it  exercises  and  strengthens  their  judgment  and  their 
reflecting  powers  more  than  almost  any  thing  besides;  so 
that  if  interesting  them  in  this  way  in  the  management  of 
the  school,  were  of  no  benefit  to  me,  I  should  retain  the 
practice,  as  most  valuable  to  them.  But  it  is  most  useful 
to  me  and  to  the  school.  I  think  nothing  has  contributed 
more  to  its  prosperity  than  the  active  interest  which  the 
scholars  have  always  taken  in  its  concerns,  and  the  assist- 
ance they  have  rendered  me  in  carrying  my  plans  into 
effect. 

You  will  observe  that  in  transacting  this  business,  very 
little  is  actually  done  by  myself,  except  making  the  ulti- 
mate decision.  All  the  details  of  business  are  assigned  to 
teachers,  or  to  officers  and  committees  appointed  for  the 
purpose.  By  this  means  we  despatch  business  very  rap- 
idly. The  system  of  offices  will  be  explained  in  another 
place ;  but  I  may  say  here  that  all  appointments  and  elec- 
tions are  made  in  this  quarter  hour,  and  by  means  of  the 
assistance  of  these  officers  the  transaction  of  business  is 
so  facilitated  that  much  more  can  sometimes  be  accom- 
plished than  you  would  suppose  possible.  I  consider  this 
period  as  one  the  most  important  in  the  whole  morning. 


Second  Recess. 
(See  plan.) 

After  the  expiration  of  the  quarter  hour  above  describ- 
ed, the  study  card  is  dropped,  and  a  recess  succeeds. 


204  MT>    VERNON    SCHOOL. 

Fourth  Hour. — Sections. 
(See  plan.) 

In  all  the  former  part  of  the  day  the  scholars  are  divid- 
ed into  classes,  according  to  their  proficiency  in  particular 
branches  of  study,  and  they  resort  to  their  recitations  for 
instruction.  They  now  are  divided  into  six  sections  as  we 
call  them,  and  placed  under  the  care  of  superintendents, 
not  for  instruction,  but  for  what  may  be  called  supervision. 
Teaching  a  pupil  is  not  all  that  is  necessary  to  be  done 
for  her  in  school.  There  are  many  other  things,  to  be  at- 
tended to — such  as  supplying  her  with  the  various  articles 
necessary  for  her  use, — seeing  that  her  desk  is  convenient, 
— that  her  time  is  well  arranged, — that  she  has  not  too 
much  to  do,  nor  too  little, — and  that  no  difficulty  which 
can  be  removed,  obstructs  her  progress  in  study,  or  her 
happiness  in  school.  The  last  hour  is  appropriated  to  this 
purpose,  with  the  understanding,  however,  that  such  a  por- 
tion of  it  as  is  not  wanted  by  the  superintendent,  is  to  be 
spent  in  study.  You  will  see  then,  when  the  last  hour 
arrives,  that  all  the  scholars  go  in  various  directions,  to 
the  meetings  of  their  respective  sections.  Here  they  re- 
main as  long  as  the  superintendent  retains  them.  Some- 
times they  adjourn  almost  immediately;  perhaps  after  hav- 
ing simply  attended  to  the  distribution  of  pens  for  the  next 
day;  at  other  times  they  remain  during  the  hour,  attend- 
ing to  such  exercises  as  the  superintendent  may  plan.  The 
design,  however,  and  nature  of  this  whole  arrangement,  I 
shall  explain  more  fully  in  another  place. 

Close  of  the  School. 

As  the  end  of  the  hour  approaches,  five  minutes  notice 
is  given  by  the  bell,  and  when  the  time  arrives,  the  study 
card  is  half  dropped  for  a  moment  before  the  closing  exer- 
cises. When  it  rises  again  the  room  is  restored  to  silence 
and  order.  We  then  sing  a  verse  or  two  of  a  hymn,  and 
commend  ourselves  to  God's  protection  in  a  short  prayer. 


MT.    VERNON    SCHOOL  205 

As  the  scholars  raise  their  heads  from  the  posture  of  rev- 
erence they  have  assumed,  th^y  pause  a  moment  till  the 
regulator  lets  down  the  study  card,  and  the  sound  of  its 
bell  is  the  signal  that  our  duties  at  school  are  ended  for 
the  day. 


III.       INSTRUCTION    AND     SUPERVISION     OF    PUPILS. 

For  the  instruction  of  the  pupils,  the  school  is  divided 
into  classes,  and  for  their  general  supervision,  into  sections, 
as  has  been  intimated  in  the  preceding  chapter.  The 
head  of  a  class  is  called  a  Teacher,  and  the  head  of  a  section 
a  Superintendent.  The  same  individual  may  be  both  the 
Teacher  of  a  class,  and  the  Superintendent  of  a  section. 
The  two  offices  are,  however,  entirely  distinct  in  their 
nature  and  design.  As  you  will  perceive  by  recalling  to 
mind  the  daily  order  of  exercises,  the  classes  meet  and 
recite  during  the  first  three  hours  of  the  school,  and  the 
sections  assemble  on  the  fourth  and  last.  We  shall  give 
each  a  separate  description. 

1.    CLASSES. 

The  object  of  the  division  into  classes  is  instruction. 
Whenever  it  is  desirable  that  several  individuals  should 
pursue  a  particular  study,  a  list  of  their  names  is  made 
out,  a  book  selected,  a  time  for  recitation  assigned,  a  teach- 
er appointed,  and  the  exercises  begin.  In  this  way  a 
large  number  of  classes  have  been  formed,  and  the  wishes 
of  parents  or  the  opinion  of  the  Principal,  and  in  many 
cases  that  of  the  pupil,  determines  how  many  and  what 
shall  be  assigned  to  each  individual.  A  list  of  these  classes, 
with  the  average  age  of  the  members,  the  name  of  the 
teacher,  and  the  time  of  recitation,  is  posted  in  a  conspic- 
uous place,  and  public  notice  is  given  whenever  a  new 
class  is  formed.  You  will  therefore  have  the  opportunity 
to  know  all  the  arrangements  of  school  in  this  respect, 
and  I  wish  you  to  exercise  your  own  judgment  and  discre- 
tion a  great  deal,  in  regard  to  your  studies.  1  do  not  mean 
I  expect  you  to  decide,  but  to  reflect  upon  them.  Look  at 
18 


206  MT.    VERNON    SCHOOL 

the  list,  and  consider  what  are  most  useful  for  you.  Pro- 
pose to  me  or  to  your  parents,  changes,  whenever  you  think 
any  are  necessary ;  and  when  you  finish  one  study,  reflect 
carefully,  yourself,  on  the  question  what  you  shall  next 
commence. 

The  scholars  prepare  their  lessons  when  they  please. 
They  are  expected  to  be  present  and  prepared  at  the  time 
of  recitation,  but  they  make  the  preparation  when  it  is 
most  convenient.  The  more  methodical  and  systematic 
of  the  young  ladies,  mark  the  times  of  study  as  well  a« 
of  recitation  upon  their  schedules,  so  that  the  employment 
of  their  whole  time  at  school  is  regulated  by  a  systematic 
plan.  You  will  observe  too,  that  by  this  plan  of  having  a 
great  many  classes  reciting  through  the  first  three  hours 
of  the  morning,  every  pupil  can  be  employed  as  much  or 
as  little  as  her  parents  please.  In  a  case  of  ill  health,  she 
may,  as  has  often  been  done  in  such  cases  at  the  request 
of  parents,  join  one  or  two  classes  only,  and  occupy  the 
whole  forenoon  in  preparing  for  them,  and  be  entirely  free 
from  school  duties  at  home.  Or  she  may,  as  is  much  more 
frequently  the  case,  choose  to  join  a  great  many  classes, 
so  as  to  fill  up,  perhaps,  her  whole  schedule  with  recita- 
tions, in  which  case  she  must  prepare  all  her  lessons  at 
home.  It  is  the  duty  of  teachers  to  take  care,  however, 
when  a  pupil  pleads  want  of  time  as  a  reason  for  being 
unprepared  in  any  lesson,  that  the  case  is  fully  examin- 
ed, that  it  may  be  ascertained  whether  the  individual  has 
joined  too  many  classes,  in  which  case  some  one  should 
be  dropped,  and  thus  the  time  and  the  employments  of 
each  individual  should  be  so  adjusted  as  to  give  her  con- 
stant occupation  in  school,  and  as  much  more  as  her  parents 
may  desire.  By  this  plan  of  the  classes,  each  scholar 
goes  on  just  as  rapidly  in  her  studies,  as  her  time,  and 
talents,  and  health  will  allow.  No  one  is  kept  back  by 
the  rest.  Each  class  goes  on  regularly  and  systematic- 
ally, all  its  members  keeping  exactly  together  in  that  study, 
but  the  various  members  of  it  will  have  joined  a  greater 
or  less  number  of  other  classes,  according  to  their  age,  or 
abilities,  or  progress  in  study,  so  that  all  will  or  may  have 
full  employment  for  their  time. 


MT.    VERNON 

When  you  first  enter  the  school,  you  wftTf^Fefc-aTday  or 
two,  be  assigned  to  but  few  classes,  for  your  mind  will  be 
distracted  by  the  excitement  of  new  scenes  and  pursuits, 
and  the  intellectual  effort  necessary  for  joining  a  class  is 
greater  than  that  requisite  for  going  on  with  it,  after  being 
once  under  way.  After  a  few  days  you  will  come  to  me 
and  say,  perhaps,  (for  this  is  ordinarily  the  process:) 

"  Mr.  Abbott,  I  think  I  have  time  for  some  more 
studies." 

"  I  will  thank  you  to  bring  me  your  schedule,"  I  say  in 
reply,  "  so  that  I  can  see  what  you  have  now  to  do." 

By  glancing  my  eye  over  the  schedule  in  such  a  case, 
I  see  in  a  moment  what  duties  have  been  already  assign- 
ed you,  and  from  my  general  schedule,  containing  all  the 
studies  of  the  school,  I  select  what  would  be  most  suitable 
for  you,  after  conferring  with  you  about  your  past  pursuits, 
and  your  own  wishes  or  those  of  your  parents  in  regard  to 
your  future  course.  Additions  are  thus  made,  until  your 
time  is  fully  occupied. 

The  manner  of  recitation  in  the  classes,  is  almost  bound- 
lessly varied.  The  design  is  not  to  have  you  commit  to 
memory  what  the  book  contains,  but  to  understand  and 
digest  it, — to  incorporate  it  fully  into  your  own  mind,  that 
it  may  come  up  in  future  life,  in  such  a  form  as  you  wish 
it  for  use.  Do  not  then,  in  ordinary  cases,  endeavor  to 
fix  words,  but  ideas  in  your  minds.  Conceive  clearly, — 
paint  distinctly  to  your  imagination  what  is  described, — 
contemplate  facts  in  all  their  bearings  and  relations,  and 
thus  endeavor  to  exercise  the  judgment  and  the  thinking 
and  reasoning  powers,  rather  than  the  mere  memory,  upon 
the  subjects  which  will  come  before  you. 

2.    SECTIONS. 

In  describing  the  order  of  daily  exercises,  I  alluded  to 
the  sections  which  assemble  in  the  last  hour  of  the  school. 
It  is  necessary  that  I  should  fully  describe  the  system  of 
sections,  as  it  constitutes  a  very  important  part  of  the  plan 
of  the  school. 


208  MT.    VERNON    SCHOOL. 

Besides  giving  the  scholars  the  necessary  intellectual 
instruction,  there  are,  as  I  have  already  remarked,  a  great 
many  other  points  which  must  receive  attention^  in  order 
to  promote  their  progress,  and  to  secure  the  regular  oper- 
ation and  general  welfare  of  the  school.  These  various 
points  have  something  common  in  their  nature,  but  it  is 
difficult  to  give  them  a  common  name.  They  are  such  as 
supplying  the  pupils  with  pens  and  paper,  and  stationary 
of  other  kinds, — becoming  acquainted  with  each  individ- 
ual, ascertaining  that  she  has  enough,  and  not  too  much 
to  do, — arranging  her  work  so  that  no  one  of  her  duties 
shall  interfere  with  another, — assisting  her  to  discover  and 
to  correct  her  faults, — and  removing  any  sources  of  diffi- 
culty or  causes  of  discontent,  which  may  gradually  come 
in  her  way.  These,  and  a  multitude  of  similar  points 
constituting  what  may  be  called  the  general  administration 
of  the  school,  become,  when  the  number  of  pupils  is  large, 
a  most  important  branch  of  the  teacher's  duty. 

To  accomplish  these  objects  more  effectually,  the  school 
is  divided  into  six  SECTIONS,  arranged  not  according  to 
proficiency  in  particular  studies,  as  the  several  classes 
are,  but  according  to  age  and  general  maturity  of  mind. 
Each  one  of  these  sections  is  assigned  to  the  care  of  a 
Superintendent.  These  Superintendents,  it  is  true,  during 
most  of  school  hours  are  also  Teachers.  Their  duties 
however  as  Teachers,  and  as  Superintendents  are  entirely 
distinct.  I  shall  briefly  enumerate  the  duties  which  de- 
volve upon  her  in  the  latter  capacity. 

1.  A  Superintendent  ought  to  prepare  an  exact  list  of 
the  members  of  her  section,  and   to  become   intimately 
acquainted  with  them,  so  as  to  be  as  far  as  possible  their 
friend  and  confidant,  and  to    feel  a  stronger  interest  in 
their  progress  in  study  and  their  happiness  in  school,  and 
a  greater  personal  attachment  to  them  than  to  any  other 
scholars. 

2.  She  is  to  superintend  the  preparation  of  their  sched- 
ules,— to  see  that  each  one  has  enough  and  not  too  much 
to  do,  by  making  known  to  me  the  necessity  of  a  change 
where  such  necessity  exists; — to  see  that  the  schedules 


MT.    VERNON    SCHOOL.  209 

are  submitted  to  the  parents,  and  that  their  opinion,  or 
suggestions  if  they  wish  to  make  any,  are  reported  to  me. 

3.  She  is  to  take  care  that  all  the  daily  wants  of  her 
section  are  supplied, — that  all  have  pens  and  paper,  and 
desks  of  suitable  height.     If  any  are  new  scholars,  she 
ought  to  interest  herself  in  assisting  them  to  become  ac- 
quainted in  school, — if  they  are  friendless  and  alone,  to 
find  companions  for  them,  and  to  endeavor  in  every  way, 
to  make  their  time  pass  pleasantly  and  happily. 

4.  To   watch  the    characters  of  the   members  of  her 
section.     To  inquire  of  their  several  teachers  as  to  the 
progress  they  make  in  study,  and  the    faithfulness    and 
punctuality  with  which  they  prepare  their  lessons.     She 
ought  to  ascertain  whether  they  are  punctual  at  school, 
and  regular  in  their  habits, — whether  their  desks  are  neat 
and  well  arranged,  and  their  exercises  carefully  executed. 
She  ought  to  correct,  through  her  own  influence,  any  evils 
of  this  kind  she  may  find,  or  else  immediately  to  refer  the 
cases  where  this  cannot  be  done,  to  me. 

The  better  and  the  more  pleasantly  to  accomplish  the 
object  of  exerting  a  favorable  influence  upon  the  charac- 
ters of  the  members  of  their  sections,  the  Superintendents 
ought  often  to  bring  up  subjects  connected  with  moral  and 
religious  duty  in  section  meetings.  This  may  be  done  in 
the  form  of  subjects  assigned  for  composition,  or  proposed 
for  free  discussion  in  writing  or  conversation,  or,  the  Super- 
intendents- may  write  themselves,  and  read  to  the  section 
the  instructions  they  wish  to  give. 

5.  Though  the  Superintendents  as  such,  have  necessa- 
rily speaking,  no  teaching  to  do,  still  they  ought  particu- 
larly to  secure  the  progress  of  every  pupil  in  what  may  be 
called  the  essential  studies,  such  as  reading,  writing,  and 
spelling.     For  this  purpose  they  either  see  that  their  pu- 
pils are  going  on  successfully  in  classes  in  school,  in  these 
branches,  or  they  may  attend  to  them  in  the  Section,  pro- 
vided that  they  never  allow  such  instruction  to  interfere 
with  their  more  appropriate  and  important  duties. 

In   a  word,  the   Superintendents  are   to   consider  the 
members  of  their  Sections  as  pupils  confided  to  their  care, 
and  they  are  not  merely  to  discharge  mechanically  any 
18* 


210  MT.    VERNON    SCHOOL. 

mere  routine  of  duty,  such  as  can  be  here  pointed  out,  but 
to  exert  all  their  powers, — their  ingenuity,  their  knowledge 
of  human  character,  their  judgment  and  discretion  in  every 
way,  to  secure  for  each  of  those  committed  to  their  care, 
the  highest  benefits  which  the  institution  to  which  they 
belong  can  afford.  They  are  to  keep  a  careful  and  faith- 
ful record  of  their  plans  and  of  the  history  of  their  respec- 
tive Sections,  and  to  endeavor,  as  faithfully  and  as  dili- 
gently, to  advance  the  interests  of  the  members  of  them, 
as  if  the  Sections  were  separate  and  independent  schools 
of  their  own. 

A  great  responsibility  is  thus  evidently  intrusted  to  them, 
but  not  a  great  deal  of  power.  They  ought  not  to  make 
changes,  except  in  very  plain  cases,  without  referring  the 
subject  to  me.  They  ought  not  to  make  rash  experiments, 
or  even  to  try  many  new  plans  without  first  obtaining  my 
approval  of  them.  They  ought  to  refer  all  cases  which 
they  cannot  easily  manage,  to  my  care.  They  ought  to 
understand  the  distinction  between  seeing  that  a  thing  is 
done,  and  doing  it.  For  example,  if  a  Superintendent 
thinks  that  one  of  her  Section  is  in  too  high  a  class  in 
Arithmetic,  her  duty  is  not  to  undertake,  by  her  own 
authority,  to  remove  her  to  a  lower  one,  for,  as  Superin- 
tendent, she  has  no  authority  over  Arithmetic  classes;  nor 
should  she  go  the  opposite  extreme  of  saying,  "  I  have 
no  authority  over  Arithmetic  classes,  and  therefore  I  have 
nothing  to  do  with  this  case."  She  ought  to  go  to  the 
teacher  of  the  class  to  which  her  pupil  had  been  unwisely 
assigned,  converse  with  her,  obtain  her  opinion,  then  find 
some  other  class  more  suited  to  her  attainments,  and  after 
fully  ascertaining  all  the  facts  in  the  case,  bring  them  to 
me,  that  I  may  make  the  change.  This  is  superintendence; 
— looking  over  the  condition  and  progress  of  the  scholar. 
The  Superintendents  have  thus  great  responsibility,  and 
yet  comparatively  little  power.  They  accomplish  a  great 
deal  of  good,  and  in  its  ordinary  course  it  is  by  their  direct 
personal  efforts;  but  in  making  changes  and  remedying 
defects  and  evils,  they  act  generally  in  a  different  way. 

The  last  hour  of  school  is  devoted  to  the  Sections.  No 
classes  recite  then,  but  the  Sections  meet,  if  the  Supcrin- 


JVIT.    VERNON    SCHOOL.  211 

tendents  wish,  and  attend  to  such  exercises  as  they  pro- 
vide. Each  Section  has  its  own  organization,  its  own  offi- 
cers and  plans.  These  arrangements  of  course,  vary  in 
their  character  according  to  the  ingenuity  and  enterprise 
of  the  Superintendents,  and  more  especially  according  to 
the  talents  and  intellectual  ardor  of  the  members  of  the 
Section. 

The  two  upper  Sections  are  called  Senior,  the  next  two 
Middle,  and  the  two  younger  Junior.  The  senior  Sec- 
tions are  distinguished  by  using  paper  for  Section  pur- 
poses, with  a  light  blue  tinge.  To  the  middle  Sections 
is  assigned  a  light  straw  color;  and  to  the  junior,  pink. 
These  colors  are  used  for  the  schedules  of  the  members, 
and  for  the  records,  and  other  documents  of  the  Section. 

This  account,  though  it  is  brief,  will  be  sufficient  to  ex- 
plain to  you  the  general  principles  of  the  plan.  You  will 
soon  become  acquainted  with  the  exercises  and  arrange- 
ments of  the  particular  Section  to  which  you  will  be  as- 
signed, and  by  taking  an  active  interest  in  them,  and 
endeavoring  to  co-operate  with  the  Superintendent  in  all 
her  measures,  and  to  comply  with  her  wishes,  you  will 
very  materially  add  to  her  happiness,  and  do  your  part 
towards  elevating  the  character  of  the  circle  to  which  you 
will  belong. 

IV.    OFFICERS. 

In  consequence  of  the  disposition  early  manifested  by 
the  scholars,  to  render  me  every  assistance  in  their  power 
in  carrying  into  effect  the  plans  of  the  school,  and  promot- 
ing its  prosperity,  I  gradually  adopted  the  plan  of  assign- 
ing to  various  officers  and  committees,  a  number  of  spe- 
cific duties,  relating  to  the  general  business  of  the  school. 
These  offices  have  gradually  multiplied  as  the  school  has 
increased,  and  as  business  has  accumulated.  The  system 
has,  from  time  to  time,  been  revised,  condensed,  and  sim- 
plified, and  at  the  present  time  it  is  thus  arranged.  The 
particular  duties  of  each  officer,  are  minutely  described  to 
the  individuals  themselves  at  the  time  of  their  election;  all 


212  MT.    VERNON    SCHOOL. 

I  intend  here  is  to  give  a  general  view  of  the  plan,  such 
as  is  necessary  for  the  scholars  at  large. 

There  are  then,  Jive  departments  of  business  entrusted 
to  officers  of  the  school,  the  names  of  the  officers,  and  a 
brief  exposition  of  their  duties  are  as  follows. 

[I  omit  the  particular  explanation  of  the  duties  of  the  officers,  as  the 
arrangement  must  vary  in  different  schools,  and  the  details  of  any 
one  plan  can  only  be  useful  in  the  school-room  to  which  it  belongs. 
It  will  be  sufficient  to  name  the  officers  of  each  department  with  their 
duties  in  general  terms.] 

1.  REGULATORS.     To   assist    in  the  ordinary  routine 
of  business  in  school — ringing   the  bells — managing   the 
study  card — distributing  and  collecting  papers — counting 
votes,  &c. 

2.  SECRETARIES.     Keeping  the  records  and  executing 
writing  of  various  kinds. 

3.  ACCOUNTANTS.    Keeping  a  register  of  the  scholars, 
and  various  other  duties  connected  with  the  accounts. 

4.  LIBRARIANS.    To  take  charge  of  books  and  station- 
ary. 

5.  CURATORS.     To  secure  neatness  and  good  order  in 
the  apartments. 

The  Secretaries  and  Accountants  are  appointed  by  the 
Principal,  and  will  generally  be  chosen  from  the  teachers. 
The  first  in  each  of  the  other  departments  are  chosen  by 
ballot,  by  the  scholars.  Each  one  thus  chosen  nominates 
the  second  in  her  department,  and  they  two,  the  assistants. 
These  nominations  must  be  approved  at  a  teacher's  meet- 
ing, for  if  a  scholar  is  inattentive  to  her  studies,  disorderly 
in  her  desk,  or  careless  and  troublesome  in  her  manners, 
she  evidently  ought  not  to  be  appointed  to*  public  office. 
No  person  can  hold  an  office  in  two  of  these  departments. 
She  can,  if  she  pleases,  however,  resign  one  to  accept  an- 
other. Each  of  these  departments  ought  often  to  assem- 
ble and  consult  together,  and  form  plans  for  carrying  into 
effect  with  greater  efficiency,  the  objects  entrusted  to  them. 
They  are  to  keep  a  record  of  all  their  proceedings,  the 


MT.    VERNON    SCHOOL.  213 

head  of  the  department  acting  as  secretary  for  this  pur- 
pose. 

The  following  may  be  given  as  an  example  of  the  man- 
ner in  which  business  is  transacted  by  means  of  these 
officers.  On  the  day  that  the  above  description  of  their 
duties  was  written,  I  wished  for  a  sort  of  directory,  to 
assist  the  collector  employed  to  receive  payments  for  the 
bills;  and,  to  obtain  it,  I  took  the  following  steps. 

At  the  business  quarter  hour,  I  issued  the  following 
order. 

"  Before  the  close  of  school  I  wish  the  distributors  to 
leave  upon  each  of  the  desks,  a  piece  of  paper,"  (the  size 
I  described.)  "It  is  for  a  purpose  which  I  shall  then 
explain." 

Accordingly  at  any  leisure  moment,  before  the  close 
of  school,  each  one  went  with  her  box  to  the  stationary 
shelves,  which  you  will  see  in  the  corners  of  the  room, 
where  a  supply  of  paper,  of  all  the  various  sizes,  used  in 
school,  is  kept,  and  taking  out  a  sufficient  number,  they 
supplied  all  the  desks  in  their  respective  divisions. 

When  the  time  for  closing  school  arrived,  I  requested 
each  young  lady  to  write  the  name  of  her  parent  or  guar- 
dian upon  the  paper,  and  opposite  to  it,  his  place  of  busi- 
ness. This  was  done  in  a  minute  or  two. 

"  All  those  whose  parent's  or  guardian's  name  begins 
with  a  letter  above  m.  may  rise." 

They  rose. 

"  The  distributors  may  collect  the  papers." 

The  officers  then  passed  round  in  regular  order,  each 
through  her  own  division,  and  collected  the  papers. 

"  Deliver  them  at  the  Accountant's  desk." 

They  were  accordingly  carried  there,  and  received  by 
the  Accountants. 

In  the  same  manner  the  others  were  collected  and  re- 
ceived by  the  Accountants,  but  kept  separate. 

"  I  wish  now  the  second  Accountant  would  copy  these 
in  a  little  book  I  have  prepared  for  the  purpose,  arranging 
them  alphabetically,  referring  all  doubtful  cases  again  to 
rne." 

The  second  Accountant  then  arranged  the  papers,  and 


214  MT.    VERNON    SCHOOL. 

prepared  them  to  go  into  the  book,  and  the  writer  who 
belongs  to  the  department  copied  them  fairly. 

I  describe  this  case,  because  it  was  one  which  occurred 
at  the  time  I  was  writing  the  above  description,  and  not 
because  there  is  any  thing  otherwise  peculiar  in  it.  Such 
cases  are  continually  taking  place,  and  by  the  division  of 
labor  above  illustrated,  I  arn  very  much  assisted  in  a  great 
many  of  the  duties,  which  would  otherwise  consume  a 
great  portion  of  my  time. 

Any  of  the  scholars  may,  at  any  time,  make  suggestions 
in  writing,  to  any  of  these  officers,  or  to  the  whole  school. 
And  if  an  officer  should  be  partial,  or  unfaithful,  or  neg- 
ligent in  her  duty,  any  scholar  may  propose  her  impeach- 
ment. After  hearing  what  she  chooses  to  write  in  her 
defence,  a  vote  is  taken  on  sustaining  the  impeachment. 
If  it  is  sustained,  she  is  deprived  of  the  office  and  another 
appointed  to  fill  her  place. 

V.    THE    COURT. 

I  have  already  described  how  all  serious  cases  of  doing 
wrong  or  neglect  of  duty  are  managed  in  the  school.  I 
manage  them  myself,  by  coming  as  directly  and  as  openly 
as  I  can,  to  the  heart  and  conscience  of  the  offender.  There 
are,  however,  a  number  of  little  transgressions,  too  small 
to  be  individually  worthy  of  serious  attention,  but  which 
are  yet  troublesome  to  the  community,  when  frequently  re- 
peated. These  relate  chiefly  to  order  in  the  school  rooms. 
These  misdemeanors  are  tried,  half  in  jest,  and  half  in 
earnest,  by  a  sort  of  court,  whose  forms  of  process  might 
make  a  legal  gentleman  smile.  They  however  fully  an- 
swer our  purpose.  I  can  best  give  you  an  idea  of  the  court, 
by  describing  an  actual  trial.  I  ought  however  first  to  say, 
that  any  young  lady,  who  chooses  to  be  free  from  the  juris- 
diction of  the  court,  can  signify  that  wish  to  me,  and  she 
is  safe  from  it.  This  however  is  never  done.  They  all 
see  the  useful  influence  of  it,  and  wish  to  sustain  it. 

Near  the  close  of  school,  I  find  perhaps  on  my  desk  a 
paper  of  which  the  following  may  be  considered  a  copy. 
It  is  called  the  indictment. 


MT.  VERNON  SCHOOL.  215 


We  accuse  Miss  A.  B.  of  having  waste  papers  in  the 
aisle  opposite  her  desk,  at  11  o'clock,  on  Friday,  Oct.  12. 

C1     D   ) 
F    F   (  Witnesses. 

I  give  notice  after  school  that  a  case  is  to  be  tried* 
Those  interested,  twenty  or  thirty  perhaps,  gather  around 
my  desk,  while  the  sheriff  goes  to  summon  the  accused 
and  the  witnesses.     A  certain  space  is  marked  off  as  the 
precincts  of  the  court,  within  which  no  one  must  enter  in 
the  slightest  degree,  on  pain  of  imprisonment,  i.  e.  con- 
finement to  her  seat  until  the  court  adjourns. 

II  Miss  A.  B. ;  you  are  accused  of  having  an  untidy  floor 
about  your  desk.     Have  you  any  objection  to  the  indict- 
ment?" 

While  she  is  looking  over  the  indictment,  to  discover  a 
mispelled  word,  or  an  error  in  the  date,  or  some  other  la- 
tent flaw,  I  appoint  any  two  of  the  bystanders,  jury.  The 
jury  come  forward  to  listen  to  the  cause. 

The  accused  returns  the  indictment,  saying,  she  has  no 
objection,  and  the  witnesses  are  called  upon  to  present 
their  testimony. 

Perhaps  the  prisoner  alleges  in  defence  that  the  papers 
were  out  in  the  aisle,  not  under  her  desk,  or  that  she  did  not 
put  them  there,  or  that  they  were  too  few,  or  too  small,  to 
deserve  attention. 

My  charge  to  the  jury  would  be  somewhat  as  follows. 

"  You  are  to  consider  and  decide  whether  she  was  guilty 
of  disorder;  taking  into  view  the  testimony  of  the  witness- 
es, and  also  her  defence.  It  is  considered  here  that  each 
young  lady  is  responsible  not  only  for  the  appearance  of 
the  carpet  und-er  her  desk,  but  also  for  the  aisle  opposite  to 
it,  so  that  her  first  ground  of  defence  must  be  abandoned. 
So  also  with  the  second,  that  she  did  not  put  them  there. 
She  ought  not  to  have  them  there.  Each  scholar  must  keep 
her  own  place  in  a  proper  condition; — so  that  if  disorder 
is  found  there,  no  matter  who  made  it,  she  is  responsible, 
if  she  only  had  time  to  remove  it.  As  to  the  third,  you 
must  judge  whether  enough  has  been  proved  by  the  wit- 
nesses to  make  out  real  disorder."  The  jury  write  guilty 
or  not  guilty  upon  the  paper,  and  it  is  returned  to  me.  If 


216  MT.  VERNON  SCHOOL. 

sentence  is  pronounced  it  is  usually  confinement  to  the 
seat,  during  a  recess,  or  part  of  a  recess,  or  something 
that  requires  slight  effort  or  sacrifice,  for  the  public  good. 
The  sentence  is  always  something  real,  though  always 
slight,  and  the  court  has  a  great  deal  of  influence  in  a 
double  way;  making  amusement,  and  preserving  order. 

The  cases  tried  are  very  various,  but  none  of  the  serious 
business  of  the  school  is  entrusted  to  it.  Its  sessions  are 
always  held  out  of  school  hours;  and  in  fact  it  is  hardly 
considered  by  the  scholars  as  a  constituent  part  of  the  ar- 
rangements of  the  school.  So  much  so,  that  I  hesitated 
much  about  inserting  an  account  of  it  in  this  description 

VI.    RELIGIOUS  INSTRUCTION. 

In  giving  you  this  account,  brief  as  it  is,  I  ought  not  to 
omit  to  speak  of  one  feature  of  our  plan,  which  we  have 
always  intended  should  be  one  of  the  most  prominent  and 
distinctive  characteristics  of  the  school.  The  gentlemen 
who  originally  interested  themselves  in  its  establishment, 
had  mainly  in  view  the  exertion,  by  the  Principal,  of  a  de- 
cided moral  and  religious  influence  over  the  hearts  of  the 
pupils.  Knowing,  as  they  did,  how  much  more  dutiful  and 
affectionate  at  home  you  would  be,  how  much  more  suc- 
cessful in  your  studies  at  school,  how  much  happier  in  your 
intercourse  with  each  other,  and  in  your  prospects  for  the 
future  both  here  and  hereafter,  if  your  hearts  could  be 
brought  under  the  influence  of  Christian  principle,  they 
were  strongly  desirous  that  the  school  should  be  so  con- 
ducted, that  its  religious  influence,  though  gentle  and  allur- 
ing in  its  character,  should  be  frank,  and  open,  and  decidedc 
I  need  not  say  that  I  myself  entered  very  cordially  into 
these  views.  It  has  been  my  constant  effort,  and  one  of 
the  greatest  sources  of  my  enjoyment,  to  try  to  win  my  pu- 
pils to  piety,  and  to  create  such  an  atmosphere  in  school, 
that  conscience,  and  moral  principle,  and,  affection  for  the 
unseen  Jehovah,  should  reign  here.  You  can  easily  see 
how  much  pleasanter  it  is  for  me  to  have  the  school  con- 
trolled by  such  an  influence,  than  if  it  were  necessary  for 
me  to  hire  you  to  diligence  in  duty,  by  prizes  or  rewards, 


MT.  VERNON  SCHOOL.  217 

or  to  deter  you  from  neglect  or  from  transgression,  by  re- 
proaches, and  threatenings,  and  punishments. 

The  influence  which  the  school  has  thus  exerted  has  al- 
ways been  cordially  welcomed  by  my  pupils,  and  approved, 
so  far  as  I  have  known,  by  their  parents,  though  four  or 
five  denominations,  and  fifteen  or  twenty  different  congre- 
gations have  been,  from  time  to  time,  represented  in  the 
school.  There  are  few  parents  who  would  not  like  to  have 
their  children  Christians; — sincerely  and  practically  so; — 
for  every  thing  which  a  parent  can  desire  in  a  child  is  pro- 
moted, just  in  proportion  as  she  opens  her  heart  to  the  in- 
fluence of  the  spirit  of  piety.  But  that  you  may  understand 
what  course  is  taken,  I  shall  describe,  first  what  I  wish  to 
effect  in  the  hearts  of  my  pupils,  and  then  what  means  I 
take  to  accomplish  the  object. 

1.  A  large  number  of  young  persons  of  your  age,  and 
in  circumstances  similar  to  those  in  which  you  are  placed, 
perform  with  some  fidelity  their  various  outward  duties,  bid 
maintain  no  habitual  and  daily  communion  with  God.  It  is 
very  wrong  for  them  to  live  thus  without  God,  but  they  do 
not  see, — or  rather  do  not  feel  the  guilt  of  it.  They  only 
think  of  their  accountability  to  human  beings  like  them- 
selves, for  example  their  parents,  teachers,  brothers  and 
sisters,  and  friends.  Consequently  they  think  most  of 
their  external  conduct,  which  is  all  that  human  beings 
can  see.  Their  hearts  are  neglected  and  become  very 
impure, — full  of  evil  thoughts,  and  desires,  and  passions, 
which  are  not  repented  of,  and  consequently  not  forgiven. 
Now  what  I  wish  to  accomplish  in  regard  to  all  my  pupils 
is,  that  they  should  begin  to  feel  their  accountability  to  God, 
and  to  act  according  to  it.  That  they  should  explore  their 
hearts  and  ask  God's  forgiveness  for  all  their  past  sins, 
through  Jesus  Christ,  who  died  for  them  that  they  might 
be  forgiven;  and  that  they  should  from  this  time,  try  to  live 
near  to  God,  feel  his  presence,  and  enjoy  that  solid  peace 
and  happiness  which  flows  from  a  sense  of  his  protection. 
When  such  a  change  takes  place,  it  relieves  the  mind  from 
that  constant  and  irritating  uneasiness,  which  the  great 
mass  of  mankind  feel  as  a  constant  burden;  the  ceaseless 
forebodings  of  a  troubled  conscience,  reproaching  them  for 
19 


218  MT.  VERNON  SCHOOL. 

their  past  accumulated  guilt,  and  warning  them  of  a  judg- 
ment to  come.  The  change  which  I  endeavor  to  promote, 
relieves  the  heart  both  of  the  present  suffering  and  of  the 
future  danger. 

After  endeavoring  to  induce  you  to  begin  to  act  from 
Christian  principle,  I  wish  to  explain  to  you,  your  various 
duties  to  yourselves,  your  parents,  and  to  God. 

2.  The  measures  to  which  I  resort  to  accomplish  these 
objects  are  three. 

First.  Religious  Exercises  in  School.  We  open  and 
close  the  school  with  a  very  short  prayer,  and  one  or  two 
verses  of  a  hymn.  Sometimes  I  occupy  ten  or  fifteen  min- 
utes at  one  of  the  general  exercises,  or  at  the  close  of  the 
school,  in  giving  instruction  upon  practical  religious  duty. 
The  subjects  are  sometimes  suggested  by  a  passage  of 
scripture  read  for  the  purpose,  but  more  commonly  in  an- 
other way. 

You  will  observe  often  at  the  close  of  the  school  or 
at  an  appointed  general  exercise,  that  a  scholar  will  bring 
to  my  desk  a  dark-colored  morocco  wrapper,  containing 
several  small  strips  of  paper  upon  which  questions  relat- 
ing to  moral  or  religious  duty,  or  subjects  for  remarks 
from  me,  or  anecdotes,  or  short  statements  of  facts,  giv- 
ing rise  to  inquiries  of  various  kinds,  are  written.  This 
wrapper  is  deposited  in  a  place  accessible  to  all  the  schol- 
ars, and  any  one  who  pleases,  deposits  in  it  any  question 
or  suggestion  on  religious  subjects  which  may  occur  to  her. 
You  can,  at  any  time,  do  this  yourself,  thus  presenting 
any  doubt,  or  difficulty,  or  inquiry,  which  may  at  any  time 
occur  to  you. 

Second.  Religious  Exercise  on  Saturday  afternoon.  In 
order  to  bring  up  more  distinctly  and  systematically  the 
subject  of  religious  duty,  I  established  a  long  time  ago,  a 
religious  meeting  on  Saturday  afternoon.  It  is  intended 
for  those  who  feel  interested  in  receiving  such  instruction, 
and  who  can  conveniently  attend  at  that  time.  If  you 
have  not  other  engagements,  and  if  your  parents  approve 
of  it,  I  should  be  happy  to  have  you  attend.  There  will 
be  very  little  to  interest  you  except  the  subject  itself,  for 


MT.    VERNON    SCHOOL.  219 

I  make  all  the  instructions  which  I  give  there  as  plain, 
direct,  and  practical  as  is  in  my  power.  A  considerable 
number  of  the  scholars  usually  attend,  and  frequently 
bring  with  them  many  of  their  female  friends.  You  can 
at  any  time  invite  any  one  whom  you  please,  to  come  to 
the  meeting.  It  commences  at  half  past  three  and  con- 
tinues about  half  an  hour. 

Third.  Personal  religious  instruction.  In  consequence 
of  the  large  number  of  my  pupils,  and  the  constant  occu- 
pation of  my  time  in  school,  I  have  scarcely  any  opportu- 
nity of  religious  conversation  with  them,  even  with  those 
who  particularly  desire  it.  The  practice  has  therefore 
arisen,  and  gradually  extended  itself  almost  universally  in 
school,  of  writing  to  me  on  the  subject.  These  communi- 
cations are  usually  brief  notes,  expressing  the  writer's  in- 
terest in  the  duties  of  piety,  or  bringing  forward  her  own 
peculiar  practical  difficulties,  or  making  specific  inquiries, 
or  asking  particular  instruction  in  regard  to  some  branch 
of  religious  duty.  I  answer  in  a  similar  way, — very  brief- 
ly and  concisely  however, — for  the  number  of  notes  of 
this  kind  which  I  receive,  is  very  large,  and  the  time 
which  I  can  devote  to  such  a  correspondence  necessarily 
limited.  I  should  like  to  receive  such  communications 
from  all  my  pupils;  for  advice  or  instruction  communi- 
cated in  reply,  being  directly  personal,  is  far  more  likely 
to  produce  effect.  Besides  my  remarks  being  in  writing, 
can  be  read  a  second  time,  and  be  more  attentively  con- 
sidered and  re-considered,  than  when  words  are  merely 
spoken.  These  communications  must  always  be  begun 
by  the  pupil.  I  never,  (unless  there  may  be  occasional 
exceptions  in  some  few  very  peculiar  cases)  commence. 
I  am  prevented  from  doing  this  both  by  my  unwillingness 
to  obtrude  such  a  subject  personally  upon  those  who  might 
not  welcome  it,  and  by  want  of  time.  I  have  scarcely  time 
to  write  to  all  those  who  are  willing  first  to  write  to  me. 
Many  cases  have  occurred  where  individuals  have  strong- 
ly desired  some  private  communication  with  me,  but  have 
hesitated  long,  and  shrunk  reluctantly  from  the  first  step. 
I  hope  it  will  not  be  so  with  you.  Should  you  ever  wish 
to  receive  from  me  any  direct  religious  instruction,  I  hope 


220  MT.  VERNON    SCHOOL. 

you  will  write  immediately  and  freely.  I  shall  very  pro- 
bably not  even  notice  that  it  is  the  first  time  I  have 
received  such  a  communication  from  you.  So  numerous 
and  so  frequent  are  these  communications  that  I  seldom 
observe,  when  I  receive  one  from  any  individual  for  the 
first  time,  that  it  comes  from  one  who  has  not  written  me 
before. 

Such  are  the  means  to  which  I  resort  in  endeavoring  to 
lead  my  pupils  to  God  and  to  duty.  And  you  will  observe 
that  the  whole  design  of  them  is  to  win  and  to  allure,  not 
to  compel.  The  regular  devotional  exercises  of  school, 
are  all  which  you  will  necessarily  witness.  These  are  very 
short,  occupying  much  less  time  than  many  of  the  pupils 
think  desirable.  The  rest  is  all  private  and  voluntary.  I 
never  make  any  effort  to  urge  any  one  to  attend  the  Sat- 
urday meeting,  nor  do  I,  except  in  a  few  rare  and  pecu- 
liar cases,  ever  address  any  one  personally,  unless  she 
desires  to  be  so  addressed.  You  will  be  left  therefore  in 
this  school  unmolested, — to  choose  your  own  way.  If 
you  should  choose  to  neglect  religious  duty,  and  to  wan- 
der away  from  God,  I  shall  still  do  all  in  my  power  to 
make  you  happy  in  school,  and  to  secure  for  you  in  future 
life,  such  a  measure  of  enjoyment,  as  can  fall  to  the  share 
of  one,  over  whose  prospects  in  another  world  there  hangs 
so  gloomy  a  cloud.  I  shaU  never  reproach  you,  and  per- 
haps may  not  even  know  what  your  choice  is.  Should  you 
on  the  other  hand  prefer  the  peace  and  happiness  of  piety, 
and  be  willing  to  begin  to  walk  in  its  paths,  you  will  find 
many  both  among  the  teachers  and  pupils  of  the  Mt.  Ver- 
non  School  to  sympathize  with  you,  and  to  encourage  and 
help  you  on  your  way. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

SCHEMING. 

THE  best  teachers  in  our  country,  or  rather  those  who 
might  be  the  best,  lose  a  great  deal  of  their  time,  and  en- 
danger, or  perhaps  entirely  destroy  their  hopes  of  success, 
by  a  scheming  spirit,  which  is  always  reaching  forward 
to  something  new.  One  has  in  his  mind  some  new  school 
book,  by  which  Arithmetic,  Grammar,  or  Geography  are 
to  be  taught  with  unexampled  rapidity,  and  his  own  purse 
to  be  filled,  in  a  much  more  easy  way,  than  by  waiting  for 
the  rewards  of  patient  industry.  Another  has  the  plan  of 
a  school,  bringing  into  operation  new  principles  of  man-' 
agement  or  instruction,  which  he  is  to  establish  on  some 
favored  spot,  and  which  is  to  become  in  a  few  years  a 
second  Hofwyl.  Another  has  some  royal  road  to  learning, 
and  though  he  is  trammeled  and  held  down  by  what  he 
calls  the  ignorance  and  stupidity  of  his  Trustees  or  his 
School  Committee,  yet  if  he  could  fairly  put  his  principles 
and  methods  to  the  test,  he  is  certain  of  advancing  the 
science  of  Education  half  a  century  at  least,  at  a  single 
leap. 

Ingenuity  in  devising  new  ways,  and  enterprise  in  follow- 
ing them,  are  among  the  happiest  characteristics  of  a  new 
country  rapidly  filling  with  a  thriving  population.  With- 
out these  qualities  there  could  be  no  advance ;  society  must 
be  stationary ;  and  from  a  stationary  to  a  retrograde  con- 
dition, the  progress  is  inevitable.  The  disposition  to  make 
improvements  and  changes  may  however  be  too  great.  If 
so,  it  must  be  checked.  On  the  other  hand  a  slavish  attach- 
ment to  old  established  practices  may  prevail.  Then  the 
spirit  of  enterprise  and  experiment  must  be  awakened  and 
encouraged.  Which  of  these  two  is  to  be  the  duty  of  a 
writer  at  any  time,  will  of  course  depend  upon  the  situation 

ia* 


222  SCHEMING. 

of  the  community  at  the  time  he  writes,  and  of  the  class  of 
readers  for  which  he  takes  his  pen.  Now  at  the  present 
time,  it  is  undoubtedly  true,  that,  while  among  the  great 
mass  of  teachers  there  may  be  too  little  originality  and 
enterprise,  there  is  still  among  many  a  spirit  of  innovation 
and  change',  to  which  a  caution  ought  to  be  addressed. 
But  before  I  proceed,  let  me  protect  myself  from  miscon- 
ception by  one  or  two  remarks. 

1.  There  are  a  few  individuals  in  various  parts  of  our 
country,  who  by  ingenuity  and  enterprise,  have  made  real 
and  important  improvements  in  many  departments  of  our 
science,  and  are    still  making  them.     The  science  is  to 
be  carried  forward  by  such  men.     Let  them  not  therefore 
understand  that  any  thing  which  I  shall  say,  applies  at  all 
to  those  real  improvements  which  are  from  time  to  time, 
brought  before  the  public.     As  examples  of  this   there 
might  easily  be  mentioned,  were  it  necessary,  several  new 
modes  of  study,  and  new  text  books,  and  literary  instiUn 
tions  on    new  plans,  which  have   been  brought  forward 
within  a  few  years,  and  proved,  on  actual  trial,  to  be  of 
real  and  permanent  value. 

These  are,  or  rather  they  were,  when  first  conceived  by 
the  original  projectors,  new  schemes;  and  the  result  has 
proved  that  they  were  good  ones.  Every  teacher  too  must 
hope  that  such  improvements  will  continue  to  be  made. 
Let  nothing  therefore  which  shall  be  said  on  the  subject 
of  scheming  in  this  chapter,  be  interpreted  as  intended  to 
condemn  real  improvements  of  this  kind,  or  to  check  those 
which  may  now  be  in  progress,  by  men  of  age  or  experi- 
ence, or  of  sound  judgment,  who  are  capable  of  distin- 
guishing between  a  real  improvement  and  a  whimsical 
innovation,  which  can  never  live  any  longer  than  it  is 
sustained  by  the  enthusiasm  of  the  original  inventor. 

2.  There  are  a  great  many  teachers  in  our  country, 
who  make  their  business  a  mere  dull  and  formal  routine, 
through  which  they  plod  on,  month  after  month,  and  year 
after  year,  without  variety  or  change,  and  who  are  inclin^ 
ed  to  stigmatize  with  the  appellation  of  idle  scheming,  all 
plans,  of  whatever  kind,  to  give  variety  or  interest  to  the 
exercises  of  the  school.     Now  whatever  may  be  said  in 


SCHEMING.  223 

this  chapter  against  unnecessary  innovation  and  change, 
does  not  apply  to  efforts  to  secure  variety  in  the  details 
of  daily  study,  while  the  great  leading  objects  are  steadily 
pursued.  This  subject  has  already  been  discussed  in  the 
chapter  on  Instruction,  where  it  has  been  shown  that  every 
wise  teacher,  while  he  pursues  the  same  great  object,  and 
adopts  in  substance  the  same  leading  measures  at  all  times, 
will  exercise  all  the  ingenuity  he  possesses,  and  bring  all 
his  inventive  powers  into  requisition  to  give  variety  and 
interest  to  the  minute  details. 

To  explain  now  what  is  meant  by  such  scheming  as  is 
to  be  condemned,  let  us  suppose  a  case,  which  is  not  very 
uncommon.  A  young  man,  while  preparing  for  college, 
takes  a  school.  When  he  first  enters  upon  the  duties  of 
his  office,  he  is  diffident  and  timid,  and  walks  cautiously 
in  the  steps  which  precedent  has  marked  out  for  him. 
Distrusting  himself,  he  seeks  guidance  in  the  example 
which  others  have  set  for  him,  and  very  probably  he  imi- 
tates precisely,  though  it  may  be  insensibly  and  involun- 
tarily, the  manners  and  the  plans  of  his  own  last  teacher. 
This  servitude  soon  however,  if  he  is  a  man  of  natural 
abilities,  passes  away:  he  learns  to  try  one  experiment  after 
another,  until  he  insensibly  finds  that  a  plan  may  suc- 
ceed, even  if  it  was  not  pursued  by  his  former  teacher.  So 
far  it  is  well.  He  throws  greater  interest  into  his  school, 
and  into  all  its  exercises  by  the  spirit  with  which  he  con- 
ducts them.  He  is  successful.  After  the  period  of  his 
services  has  expired,  he  returns  to  the  pursuit  of  his  stud- 
ies, encouraged  by  his  success,  and  anticipating  further 
triumphs  in  his  subsequent  attempts. 

He  goes  on  through  college  we  will  suppose,  teaching 
from  time  to  time  in  the  vacations,  as  opportunity  occurs, 
taking  more  and  more  interest  in  the  employment,  and 
meeting  with  greater  and  greater  success.  This  success 
is  owing  in  a  very  great  degree  to  the  freedom  of  his  prac- 
tice, that  is  to  his  escape  from  the  thraldom  of  imitation. 
So  long  as  he  leaves  the  great  objects  of  the  school 
untouched,  and  the  great  features  of  its  organization  un- 
changed, his  many  plans  for  accomplishing  these  objects 


224  SCHEMING. 

in  new  and  various  ways,  awaken  interest  and  spirit  both 
in  himself  and  in  his  scholars,  and  all  goes  on  well. 

Now  in  such  a  case  as  this,  a  young  teacher  philoso- 
phizing upon  his  success  and  the  causes  of  it,  will  almost 
invariably  make  this  mistake;  viz.,  he  will  attribute  to 
something  essentially  excellent  in  his  plans,  the  success 
which,  in  fact  results  from  the  novelty  of  them. 

When  he  proposes  something  new  to  a  class,  they  all 
take  an  interest  in  it,  because  it  is  new.  He  takes,  too,  a 
special  interest  in  it  because  it  is  an  experiment  which 
he  is  trying,  and  he  feels  a  sort  of  pride  and  pleasure  in 
securing  its  success.  The  new  method  which  he  adopts, 
may  not  be,  in  itself,  in  the  least  degree  better  than  old 
methods.  Yet  it  may  succeed  vastly  better  in  his  hands, 
than  any  old  method  he  had  tried  before.  And  why? 
Why  because  it  is  new.  It  awakens  interest  in  his  class, 
because  it  offers  them  variety,  and  it  awakens  interest  in 
him,  because  it  is  a  plan  which  he  has  devised,  and  for 
whose  success  therefore  he  feels  that  his  credit  is  at  stake. 
Either  of  these  circumstances  is  abundantly  sufficient  to 
account  for  its  success.  Either  of  these  would  secure 
success,  unless  the  plan  was  a  very  bad  one  indeed. 

This  may  easily  be  illustrated  by  supposing  a  particu- 
lar case.  The  teacher  has,  we  will  imagine,  been  accus- 
tomed to  teach  spelling  in  the  usual  way,  by  assigning  a 
lesson  in  the  spelling  book,  which  the  scholars  have  stud- 
ied in  their  seats,  and  then  they  have  recited  by  having 
the  words  put  to  them  individually  in  the  class.  After 
sometime,  he  finds  that  one  class  has  lost  its  interest  in 
this  study.  He  can  make  them  get  the  lesson  it  is  true, 
but  he  perceives  perhaps  that  it  is  a  weary  task  to  them. 
Of  course  they  proceed  with  less  alacrity,  and  consequent- 
ly with  less  rapidity  and  success.  He  thinks,  very  justly, 
that  it  is  highly  desirable  to  secure  cheerful,  not  forced, 
reluctant  efforts  from  his  pupils,  and  he  thinks  of  trying 
some  new  plan.  Accordingly  he  says  to  them, 

"  Boys,  I  am  going  to  try  a  new  plan  for  this  class." 

The  mere  annunciation  of  a  new  plan  awakens  uni- 
versal attention.  The  boys  all  look  up,  wondering  what 
it  is  to  be. 


SCHEMING.  225 

"  Instead  of  having  you  study  your  lessons  in  your 
seats,  as  heretofore,  I  am  going  to  let  you  all  go  together 
into  one  corner  of  the  room,  and  choose  some  one  to  read 
the  lesson  to  you,  spelling  all  the  words  aloud.  You  will 
all  listen  and  endeavor  to  remember  how  the  difficult  ones 
are  spelled.  Do  you  think  you  can  remember?  " 

11  Yes,  sir,"  say  the  boys.  Children  always  think 
they  can  do  every  thing  which  is  proposed  to  them  as  a 
new  plan  or  experiment,  though  they  are  very  often  in- 
clined to  think  they  cannot  do  what  is  required  of  them 
as  a  task. 

"  You  may  have,"  continues  the  teacher,  "  the  words 
read  to  you  once,  or  twice,  just  as  you  please.  Only  if 
you  have  them  read  but  once,  you  must  take  a  shorter 
lesson." 

He  pauses  and  looks  round  upon  the  class.  Some  say, 
"  Once,"  some,  "  Twice." 

"  I  am  willing  that  you  should  decide  this  question. 
How  many  are  in  favor  of  having  shorter  lessons,  and 
having  them  read  but  once? — — How  many  prefer  longer 
lessons,  and  having  them  read  twice?  " 

After  comparing  the  numbers,  it  is  decided  according 
to  the  majority,  and  the  teacher  assigns,  or  allows  them 
to  assign  a  lesson. 

"  Now,"  he  proceeds,  cc  I  am  not  only  going  to  have 
you  study  in  a  different  way,  but  recite  in  a  different  way 
too.  You  may  take  your  slates  with  you,  and  after  you 
have  had  time  to  hear  the  lesson  read  slowly  and  care- 
fully twice,  I  shall  come  and  dictate  to  you  the  words 
aloud,  and  you  will  all  write  them  from  my  dictation. 
Then  I  shall  examine  your  slates,  and  see  how  many  mis- 
takes are  made." 

Any  class  of  boys  now  would  be  exceedingly  interested 
in  such  a  proposal  as  this,  especially  if  the  master's  ordi- 
nary principles  of  government  and  instruction  had  been 
such,  as  to  interest  the  pupils  in  the  welfare  of  the  school, 
and  in  their  own  progress  in  study.  They  will  come 
together  in  the  place  assigned,  and  listen  to  the  one  who 
is  appointed  to  read  the  words  to  them,  with  every  fac- 
ulty aroused,  and  their  whole  souls  engrossed  in  the  new 


226  SCHEMING. 

duties  assigned  them.  The  teacher,  too,  feels  a  special 
interest  in  his  experiment.  Whatever  else  he  may  be 
employed  about,  his  eye  turns  instinctively  to  this  group, 
with  an  intensity  of  interest,  which  an  experienced  teacher 
who  has  long  been  in  the  field,  and  who  has  tried  experi- 
ments of  this  sort  a  hundred  times,  can  scarcely  conceive. 
For  let  it  be  remembered  that  I  am  describing  the  acts 
and  feelings  of  a  new  beginner;  of  one  who  is  commenc- 
ing his  work,  with  a  feeble  and  trembling  step,  and  per- 
haps this  is  his  first  step  from  the  beaten  path  in  which 
he  has  been  accustomed  to  walk. 

This  new  plan  is  continued,  we  will  suppose,  a  week, 
during  which  time  the  interest  of  the  pupils  continues. 
They  get  longer  lessons,  and  make  fewer  mistakes  than 
they  did  by  the  old  method.  Now  in  speculating  on  this 
subject,  the  teacher  reasons  very  justly,  that  it  is  of  no 
consequence  whether  the  pupil  receives  his  knowledge 
through  the  eye,  or  through  the  ear;  whether  they  study 
in  solitude  or  in  company.  The  point  is  to  secure  their 
progress  in  learning  to  spell  the  words  of  the  English 
language,  and  as  this  point  is  secured  far  more  rapidly 
and  effectually  by  his  new  method,  the  inference  is  to  his 
mind  very  obvious,  that  he  has  made  a  great  improve- 
ment,— one  of  real  and  permanent  value.  Perhaps  he 
will  consider  it  an  extraordinary  discovery. 

But  the  truth  is,  that  in  almost  all  such  cases  as  this, 
the  secret  of  the  success  is,  not  that  the  teacher  has  dis- 
covered a  better  method  than  the  ordinary  ones,  but  that 
he  has  discovered  a  new  one.  The  experiment  will  suc- 
ceed in  producing  more  successful  results,  just  as  long  as 
the  novelty  of  it  continues  to  excite  unusual  interest  and 
attention  in  the  class,  or  the  thought  that  it  is  a  plan  of 
the  teacher's  own  invention,  leads  him  to  take  a  peculiar 
interest  in  it.  And  this  may  be  a  month,  or  perhaps  a 
quarter,  and  precisely  the  same  effects  would  have  been 
produced,  if  the  whole  had  been  reversed,  that  is,  if  the 
plan  of  dictation  had  been  the  old  one,  which  in  process 
of  time  had,  in  this  supposed  school,, lost  its  interest,  and 
the  teacher  by  his  ingenuity  and  enterprise  had  discov- 
ered and  introduced  what  is  now  the  common  mode. 


SCHEMING  227 

"  Very  well,"  perhaps  my  reader  will  reply,  "it  is  sure- 
ly something  gained  to  awaken  and  continue  interest  in  a 
dull  study,  for  a  quarter,  or  ,even  a  month.  The  experi- 
ment is  worth  something  as  a  pleasant  and  useful  change, 
even  if  it  is  not  permanently  superior  to  the  other." 

It  is  indeed  worth  something.  It  is  worth  a  great  deal; 
and  the  teacher  who  can  devise  and  execute  such  plans, 
understanding  their  real  place  and  value,  and  adhering 
steadily  through  them  all,  to  the  great  object  which  ought 
to  engage  his  attention,  is  in  the  "almost  certain  road  to 
success  as  an  instructor.  What  I  wish  is,  not  to  dis- 
courage such  efforts;  they  ought  to  be  encouraged  to  the 
utmost,  but  to  have  their  real  nature  and  design,  and  the 
real  secret  of  their  success  fully  understood,  and  to  have 
the  teacher,  above  all,  take  good  care  that  all  his  new 
plans  are  made,  not  the  substitutes  for  the  great  objects 
which  he  ought  to  keep  steadily  in  view,  but  only  the  means 
by  which  he  may  carry  them  into  more  full  and  complete 
effect. 

In  the  case  we  are  supposing  however,  we  will  imagine 
that  the  teacher  does  not  do  this.  He  fancies  that  he  has 
made  an  important  discovery,  and  begins  to  inquire  wheth- 
er the  principle,  as  he  calls  it,  cannot  be  applied  to  some 
other  studies.  He  goes  to  philosophizing  upon  it,  and 
can  find  many  reasons  why  knowledge  received  through 
the  ear  makes  a  more  ready  and  lasting  impression,  than 
when  it  comes  through  the  eye.  He  tries  to  apply  the 
method  to  Arithmetic  and  Geography,  and  in  a  short  time 
is  forming  plans  for  the  complete  metamorphosis  of  his 
school.  When  engaged  in  hearing  a  recitation,  his  mind 
is  distracted  with  his  schemes  and  plans ;  and  instead  of  de- 
voting his  attention  fully  to  the  work  he  may  have  in  hand, 
his  thoughts  are  wandering  continually  to  new  schemes  and 
fancied  improvements,  which  agitate  and  perplex  him,  and 
which  elude  his  efforts  to  give  them  a  distinct  and  definite 
form.  He  thinks  he  must  however,  carry  out  his  principle. 
He  thinks  of  its  applicability  to  a  thousand  other  cases. 
He  revolves,  over  and  over  again  in  his  mind,  plans  for 
changing  the  whole  arrangement  of  his  school.  He  is 
again  and  again  lost  in  perplexity,  his  mind  is  engrossed 


228  SCHEMING. 

and  distracted,  and  his  present  duties  are  performed  with 
no  interest,  and  consequently  with  little  spirit  or  success. 

Now  his  error  is  in  allowing  a  new  idea,  which  ought 
only  to  have  suggested  to  him  an  agreeable  change  for  a 
time,  in  one  of  his  classes,  to  swell  itself  into  undue  and 
exaggerated  importance,  and  to  draw  off  his  mind  from 
what  ought  to  be  the  objects  of  his  steady  pursuit. 

Perhaps  some  teacher  of  steady  intellectual  habits  and 
a  well  balanced  mind  may  think  that  this  picture  is  fanciful, 
and  that  there  is  little  danger  that  such  consequences  will 
ever  actually  result  from  such  a  cause.  But  far  from  hav- 
ing exaggerated  the  results,  I  am  of  opinion  that  I  might 
have  gone  much  farther.  There  is  no  doubt  that  a  great 
many  instances  have  occurred,  in  which  some  simple  idea 
like  the  one  I  have  alluded  to,  has  led  the  unlucky  con- 
ceiver  of  it,  in  his  eager  pursuit  far  deeper  into  the  diffi- 
culty, than  I  have  here  supposed.  He  gets  into  a  conten- 
tion with  the  school  committee,  that  formidable  foe  to  the 
projects  of  all  scheming  teachers;  and  it  would  not  be 
very  difficult  to  find  many  actual  cases,  where  the  individ- 
ual has,  in  consequence  of  some  such  idea,  quietly  planned 
and  taken  measures  to  establish  some  new  institution, 
where  he  can  carry  on,  unmolested,  his  plans,  and  let  the 
world  see  the  full  results  of  his  wonderful  discoveries. 

We  have  in  our  country  a  very  complete  system  of  lit- 
erary institutions,  so  far  as  external  organization  will  go, 
and  the  prospect  of  success  is  far  more  favorable  in  efforts 
to  carry  these  institutions  into  more  complete  and  prosper- 
ous operation,  than  in  plans  for  changing  them,  or  sub- 
stituting others  in  their  stead.  Were  it  not  that  such  a 
course  would  be  unjust  to  individuals,  a  long  and  mel- 
ancholy catalogue  might  easily  be  made  out,  of  abortive 
plans  which  have  sprung  up  in  the  minds  of  young  men, 
in  the  manner  I  have  described,  and  which  after  perhaps 
temporary  success,  have  resulted  in  partial  or  total  failure. 
These  failures  are  of  every  kind.  Some  are  school-books 
on  a  new  plan,  which  succeed  in  the  inventor's  hand, 
chiefly  on  account  of  the  spirit  which  carried  it  into  effect; 
but  which  in  ordinary  hands,  and  under  ordinary  cir- 
cumstances, and  especially  after  long  continued  use,  have 


SCHEMING.  229 

failed  of  exhibiting  any  superiority.  Others  are  institu- 
tions, commenced  with  great  zeal  by  the  projectors,  and 
which  succeed  just  as  long  as  that  zeal  continues.  Zeal 
will  make  any  thing  succeed  for  a  time.  Others  are  new 
plans  of  instruction  ^r  government,  generally  founded  on 
some  good  princip]  3  carried  to  an  extreme,  or  made  to 
grow  into  exaggerated  and  disproportionate  importance. 
Examples  almost  innumerable,  of  these  things  might  be 
particularized,  if  it  were  proper,  and  it  would  be  found 
upon  examination,  that  the  amount  of  ingenuity  and  labor 
wasted  upon  such  attempts,  would  have  been  sufficient,  if 
properly  expended,  to  have  elevated  very  considerably  the 
standard  of  education,  and  to  have  placed  existing  institu- 
tions in  a  far  more  prosperous  and  thriving  state  than  they 
now  exhibit. 

The  reader  will  perhaps  ask,  shall  we  make  no  efforts 
at  improvement?  Must  every  thing  in  education  go  on 
in  a  uniform  and  monotonous  manner;  and  while  all  else 
is  advancing,  shall  our  cause  alone  stand  still?  By  no 
means.  It  must  advance;  but  let  it  advance  mainly  by 
the  industry  and  fidelity  of  those  who  are  employed  in 
it;  by  changes  slowly  and  cautiously  made;  not  by  great 
efforts  to  reach  forward  to  brilliant  discoveries,  which  will 
draw  off  the  attention  from  essential  duties,  and  after  lead- 
ing the  projector  through  perplexities  and  difficulties  with- 
out number,  end  in  mortification  and  failure. 

Were  I  to  give  a  few  concise  and  summary  directions 
in  regard  to  this  subject  to  a  young  teacher,  they  would  be 
the  following: 

1 .  Examine  thoroughly  the  system  of  public  and  private 
Bchools  as  now  constituted  in  New  England,  until  you 
fully  understand  it,  and  appreciate  its  excellences  and  its 
completeness;  see  how  fully  it  provides  for  the  wants  of 
the  various  classes  of  our  population. 

By  this  I  mean  to  refer  only  to  the  completeness  of  the 
system,  as  a  system  of  organization.  I  do  not  refer  at  all 
to  the  internal  management  of  these  institutions:  this  last 
is,  of  course,  a  field  for  immediate  and  universal  effort  at 
progress  and  improvement. 

2.  If  after  fully  understanding  this  system  as  it  now 

20 


230 


SCHEMING. 


exists,  you  are  of  opinion  that  something  more  is  neces- 
sary; if  you  think  some  classes  of  the  community  are 
not  fully  provided  for,  or  that  some  of  our  institutions  may 
be  advantageously  exchanged  for  others,  whose  plan  you 
have  in  mind;  consider  whether  your  age,  and  experience, 
and  standing,  as  an  instructer  are  such  as  to  enable  you 
to  place  confidence  in  your  opinion. 

I  do  not  mean  by  this,  that  a  young  man  may  not  make 
a  useful  discovery;  but  only  that  he  may  be  led  away  by 
the  ardor  of  early  life,  to  fancy  that  essential  and  impor- 
tant, which  is  really  not  so.  It  is  important  that  each  one 
should  determine  whether  this  is  not  the  case  with  him- 
self, if  his  mind  is  revolving  some  new  plan. 

3.  Perhaps  you  are  contemplating  only  a  single  new 
institution,  which  is  to  depend  for  its  success,  on  yourself 
and  some  coadjutors  whom  you  have  in  mind,  and  whom 
you  well  know.     If  this  is  the  case,  consider  whether  the 
establishment  you  are  contemplating  can  be  carried  on, 
after  you  shall  have  left  it,  by  such  men  as  can  ordinarily 
be  obtained.     If  the  plan  is   founded  on  some  peculiar 
notions  of  your  own,  which  would  enable  you  to  succeed 
in  it,  when  others,  also  interested  in  such  a  scheme,  would 
probably  fail,  consider  whether  there  may  not  be  danger 
that  your  plan   may  be  imitated  by  others,  who  cannot 
carry  it  into  successful  operation,  so  that  it  may  be  the 
indirect  means  of  doing  injury.     A  man  is,  in  some  de- 
gree, responsible  for  his  example,  and  for  the  consequen- 
ces which  may  indirectly  flow  from  his  course,  as  well  as 
for  the  immediate  results  which  he  produces.     The  Fel- 
lenberg  school  at  Hofwyl  has  perhaps,  by  its  direct  re- 
sults, been  as  successful  for  a  given  time,  as  perhaps  any 
other  institution  in  the  world;  but  there  is  a  great  offset 
to  the  good  which  it  has  thus  done,  to  be  found  in  the  his- 

.  tory  of  the  thousand  wretched  imitations  of  it,  which  have 
been  started  only  to  linger  a  little  while  and  die,  and  in 
which  a  vast  amount  of  time,  and  talent,  and  money  have 
been  wasted. 

4.  Consider  the  influence  you  may  have  upon  the  other 
institutions  of  our  country,  by  attaching  yourself  to  some 
one   under  the   existing  organization.      If  you  take  an 


SCHEMING.  231 

academy  or  a  private  school,  constituted  and  organized 
like  other  similar  institutions,  success  in  your  own,  will 
give  you  influence  over  others.  A  successful  teacher  of 
an  academy,  raises  the  standard  of  academic  instruction 
A  college  professor,  if  he  brings  extraordinary  talents  to 
bear  upon  the  regular  duties  of  that  office,  throws  light, 
universally,  upon  the  whole  science  of  college  discipline 
and  instruction.  By  going,  however,  to  some  new  field, 
establishing  some  new  and  fanciful  institution,  you  take 
yourself  from  such  a  sphere; — you  exert  no  influence 
over  others,  except  upon  feeble  imitators,  who  fail  in  their 
attempts,  and  bring  discredit  upon  your  plans  by  the  awk- 
wardness with  which  they  attempt  to  adopt  them.  How 
much  more  service  to  the  cause  of  education,  have  Pro- 
fessors Cleaveland  and  Silliman  rendered  by  falling  in 
with  the  regularly  organized  institutions  of  the  country, 
and  elevating  them,  than  if  in  early  life,  they  had  given 
themselves  to  some  magnificent  project  of  an  establish- 
ment, to  which  their  talents  would  unquestionably  have 
given  temporary  success,  but  which  would  have  taken 
them  away  from  the  community  of  teachers,  and  confined 
the  results  of  their  labors  to  the  more  immediate  effects 
which  their  daily  duties  might  produce. 

5.  Perhaps,  however,  your  plan  is  not  the  establishment 
of  some  new  institution,  but  the  introduction  of  some  new 
study  or  pursuit  into  the  one  with  which  you  are  connected. 
Before,  however,  you  interrupt  the  regular  plans  of  your 
school  to  make  such  a  change,  consider  carefully  what  is 
the  real  and  appropriate  object  of  your  institution.  Every 
thing  is  not  to  be  done  in  school.  The  principles  of 
division  of  labor  apply  with  peculiar  force  to  this  employ- 
ment; so  that  you  must  not  only  consider  whether  the 
branch,  which  you  are  now  disposed  to  introduce,  is  im- 
portant, but  whether  it  is  really  such  an  one  as  it  is,  on  the 
whole,  best  to  include  among  the  objects  to  be  pursued  in 
such  an  institution.  Many  teachers  seem  to  imagine,  that 
if  any  thing  is  in  itself  important,  and  especially  if  it  is  an 
important  branch  of  education,  the  question  is  settled  of 
its  being  a  proper  object  of  attention  in  school.  But  this 
is  very  far  from  being  the  case.  The  whole  work  of  edu- 


232  SCHEMING. 

cation  can  never  be  intrusted  to  the  teacher.  Much  must 
of  course  remain  in  the  hands  of  the  parent;  it  ought  so 
to  remain.  The  object  of  a  school  is  not  to  take  children 
out  of  the  parental  hands,  substituting  the  watch  and  guar- 
dianship of  a  stranger,  for  the  natural  care  of  father  and 
mother.  Far  from  it.  It  is  only  the  association  of  the 
children  for  those  purposes  which  can  be  more  successfully 
accomplished  by  association.  It  is  an  union  for  few,  spe- 
cific, and  limited  objects,  for  the  accomplishment  of  that 
part,  (and  it  is  comparatively  a  small  part  of  the  general  ob- 
jects of  education)  which  can  be  most  successfully  affected 
by  public  institutions,  and  in  assemblies  of  the  young. 

6.  If  the  branch  which  you  are  desiring  to  introduce, 
appears  to  you  to  be  an  important  part  of  education,  and 
if  it  seems  to  you  that  it  can  be  most  successfully  attend- 
ed to  in  schools,  then  consider  whether  the  introduction  of 
it,  and  of  all  the  other  branches  having  equal  claims,  will, 
or  will  not  give  to  the  common  schools  too  great  a  com- 
plexity.    Consider  whether  it  will  succeed  in  the  hands 
of  ordinary  teachers.     Consider  whether  it  will  require  so 
much  time  and  effort,  as  will  draw  off,  in  any  considera- 
ble degree,  the  attention  of  the  teacher  from  the  more  es- 
sential parts  of  his  duty.     All  will  admit  that  it  is  highly 
important  that  every  school  should  be  simple  in  its  plan, — 
as  simple  as  its  size  and  general  circumstances  will  per- 
mit, and  especially,  that  the  public  schools  in  every  town 
and  village  of  our  country  should  never  lose  sight  of  what 
is,  and  must  be,  after  all,  their  great  design — teaching  the 
whole  population  to  read,  ivrite,  and  calculate. 

7.  If  it  is  a  school-book,  which  you  are  wishing  to  in- 
troduce, consider  well  before  you  waste  your  time  in  pre- 
paring it,  and  your  spirits  in  the  vexatious  work  of  getting 
it  through  the  press,  whether  it  is,  for  general  use,  so  su- 
perior to  those  already  published,  as  to  induce  teachers  to 
make  a  change  in  favor  of  yours.     I  have  italicised  the 
wordsybr  general  use,  for  no  delusion  is  more  common  than 
for  a  teacher  to  suppose,  that  because  a  text-book  which 
he  has  prepared  and  uses  in  manuscript,  is  better  for  him 
than  any  other  work  which  he  can  obtain,  it  will  therefore 
be  better  for  general  circulation.     Every  man,  if  he  has 


SCHEMING  233 

any  originality  of  mind,  has  of  course  some  peculiar  meth- 
od of  his  own,  and  he  can  of  course  prepare  a  text-book 
which  will  be  better  adapted  to  this  method,  than  those 
ordinarily  in  use.  The  history  of  a  vast  multitude  of  text- 
books, Arithmetics,  Geographies,  and  Grammars,  is  this. 
A  man  of  a  somewhat  ingenious  mind,  adopts  some  pecu- 
liar mode  of  instruction  in  one  of  these  branches,  and  is 
quite  successful,  not  because  the  method  has  any  very 
peculiar  excellence,  but  simply  because  he  takes  a  greater 
interest  in  it,  both  on  account  of  its  novelty  and  also  from 
the  fact  that  it  is  his  own  invention.  He  conceives  the 
plan  of  writing  a  text-book,  to  develope  and  illustrate  this 
method.  He  hurries  through  the  work.  By  some  means 
or  other,  he  gets  it  printed.  In  due  time  it  is  regularly 
advertised.  The  Annals  of  Education  gives  notice  of  it; 
the  author  sends  a  few  copies  to  his  friends,  and  that  is 
the  end  of  it.  Perhaps  a  few  schools  may  make  a  trial  of 
it,  and  if,  for  any  reason,  the  teachers  who  try  it  are  in- 
terested in  the  work,  perhaps  in  their  hands,  it  succeeds. 
But  it  does  not  succeed  so  well  as  to  attract  general  atten- 
tion, and  consequently  does  not  get  into  general  circula- 
tion. The  author  loses  his  time  and  his  patience.  The 
publisher,  unless  unfortunately  it  was  published  on  the 
author's  account,  loses  his  paper.  And  in  a  few  months, 
scarcely  any  body  knows  that  such  a  book  ever  saw  the 
light.  ' 

It  is  in  this  way,  that  the  great  multitude  of  school-books 
which  are  now  constantly  issuing  from  the  press,  take 
their  origin.  Far  be  it  from  me  to  discourage  the  pre- 
paration of  good  school-books.  This  department  of  our 
literature  offers  a  fine  field  for  the  efforts  of  learning  and 
genius.  What  I  contend  against,  is  the  endless  multipli- 
city of  useless  works,  hastily  conceived  and  carelessly  exe- 
cuted, and  which  serve  no  purpose,  but  to  employ  useless- 
ly, talents,  which  if  properly  applied,  might  greatly  benefit 
both  the  community  and  the  possessor. 

8.  If,  however,  after  mature  deliberation  you  conclude 

that  you  have  the  plan  of  a  school-book  which  you  ought 

to  try  to  mature  and  execute,  be  slow  and  cautious  about 

it.    Remember  that  so  great  is  now  the  competition  in  this 

20* 


234  SCHEMING. 

branch,  nothing  but  superior  excellences  will  secure  the 
favorable  reception  of  a  work.  Examine  all  that  your 
predecessors  have  done  before  you.  Obtain,  whatever  may 
be  the  trouble  and  expense,  all  other  text  books  on  the 
subject,  and  examine  them  thoroughly.  If  you  see  that 
you  can  make  a  very  decided  advance  on  all  that  has  been 
done,  and  that  the  public  will  probably  submit  to  the  in- 
convenience and  expense  of  a  change,  to  secure  the  result 
of  your  labors,  go  forward  slowly  and  thoroughly  in  your 
work.  No  matter  how  much  investigation,  how  much  time 
and  labor  it  may  require.  The  more  difficulty  you  may 
find,  in  gaining  the  eminence,  the  less  likely  will  you  be 
to  be  followed  by  successful  competitors. 

9.  Consider  in  forming  your  text-book,  not  merely  the 
whole  subject  on  which  you  are  to  write,  but  also  look  ex- 
tensively and  thoroughly  at  the  institutions  throughout  the 
country, and  consider  carefully  the  character  of  the  teach- 
ers by  whom  you  expect  it  to  be  used.     Sometimes  a  man 
publishes  a  text-book,  and  when  it  fails  on  trial,  he  says^ 
C(  It  is  because  they  did  not  know  how  to  use  it.     The  book 
in  itself  was  good.     The  whole  fault  was  in  the  awkward- 
ness and  ignorance  of  the  teacher."     How  absurd!     As 
if  to  make  a  good  text-book,  it  was  not  as  necessary  to 
adapt  it  to  teachers  as  to  scholars.    A  good  text-book  which 
the  teachers  for  whom  it  was  intended  did  not  know  how  to 
use! !   i.  e.    A  good  contrivance  but  entirely  unfit  for  the 
purpose  for  which  it  was  intended. 

10.  Lastly,  in  every  new  plan,  consider  carefully  whe- 
ther its  success  in  your  hands,  after  you  have  tried  it,  and 
found  it  successful,  be  owing  to  its  novelty  and  to  your 
own  special  interest,  or  to  its  own  innate  and  intrinsic 
superiority.     If  the  former,  use  it  so  long  as  it  will  last, 
simply  to  give  variety  and  interest  to  your  plans.    Recom- 
mend it  in  conversation  or  in  other  ways  to  teachers  with 
whom  you  are  acquainted;  not  as  a  wonderful  discovery, 
which  is  going  to  change  the  whole  science  of  education, 
but  as  one  method  among  others,  which  may  be  introduced 
from  time  to  time,  to  relieve  the  monotony  of  the  teacher's 
labors. 

In  a  word  do  not  go  away  from  the  established  institu- 


SCHEMING.  235 

tions  of  our  country,  or  deviate  from  the  great  objects 
which  are  at  present,  and  ought  to  be  pursued  by  them, 
without  great  caution,  circumspection,  and  deliberate  in- 
quiry. But  within  these  limits,  exercise  ingenuity  and 
invention  as  much  as  you  will.  Pursue  steadily  the  great 
objects  which  demand  the  teacher's  attention;  they  are 
simple  and  few.  Never  lose  sight  of  them,  nor  turn  to  the 
right  or  to  the  left  to  follow  any  ignis  fatuus  which  may 
endeavor  to  allure  you  away;  but  exercise  as  much  inge- 
nuity and  enterprise  as  you  please,  in  giving  variety  and 
interest  to  the  modes  by  which  these  objects  are  pursued. 

If  planning  and  scheming  are  confined  within  these  lim- 
its, and  conducted  on  these  principles,  the  teacher  will 
save  all  the  agitating  perplexity  and  care  which  will  other- 
wise be  his  continual  portion.  He  can  go  forward  peace- 
ably and  quietly,  and  while  his  own  success  is  greatly 
increased,  he  may  be  of  essential  service  to  the  cause 
in  which  he  is  engaged,  by  making  known  his  various  ex- 
periments and  plans  to  others.  For  this  purpose  it  seems 
to  me  highly  desirable  that  every  teacher  should  KEEP  A 
JOURNAL  of  all  his  plans.  In  these  should  be  carefully  en- 
tered all  his  experiments:  the  new  methods  he  adopts;  the 
course  he  takes  in  regard  to  difficulties  which  may  arise; 
and  any  interesting  incidents  which  may  occur,  which  it 
would  be  useful  for  him  to  refer  to,  at  some  future  time. 
These  or  the  most  interesting  of  them  should  be  made 
known  to  other  teachers.  This  may  be  done  in  several 
ways. 

(1.)  By  publishing  them  in  periodicals  dovoted  to  edu- 
cation. Such  contributions,  furnished  by  judicious  men, 
would  be  among  the  most  valuable  articles  in  such  a  work. 
They  would  be  far  more  valuable  than  any  general  spec- 
ulations, however  well  conceived  or  expressed. 

(2.)  In  news-papers  intended  for  general  circulation. 
There  are  very  few  editors  whose  papers  circulate  in  fam- 
ilies, who  would  not  gladly  receive  articles  of  this  kind, 
to  fill  a  teacher's  department1  in  their  columns.  If  prop- 
erly written  they  would  be  read  with  interest  and  profit  by 
multitudes  of  parents,  and  would  throw  much  light  on 
family  government  and  instruction. 


236  SCHEMING. 

(3.)  By  reading  them  in  teacher's  meetings.  If  half 
a  dozen  teachers  who  are  associated  in  the  same  vicinity, 
would  meet  once  a  fortnight,  simply  to  hear  each  other's 
journals,  they  would  be  amply  repaid  for  their  time  and 
labor.  Teacher's  meetings  will  be  interesting  and  useful, 
when  those  who  come  forward  in  them,  will  give  up  the 
prevailing  practice  of  delivering  orations,  and  come  down 
at  once  to  the  scenes  and  to  the  business  of  the  school- 
room. 

There  is  one  topic  connected  with  the  subject  of  this 
chapter,  which  deserves  a  few  paragraphs.  I  refer  to  the 
rights  of  the  Committee,  or  the  Trustees,  or  Patrons,  in 
the  control  of  the  school.  The  right  to  such  control,  when 
claimed  at  all,  is  usually  claimed  in  reference  to  the  teach- 
er's new  plans,  which  renders  it  proper  to  allude  to  the 
subject  here;  and  it  ought  not  to  be  omitted,  for  a  great 
many  cases  occur,  in  which  teachers  have  difficulties  with 
the  trustees  or  committee  of  their  school.  Sometimes 
these  difficulties  have  amounted  to  an  open  rupture;  at 
other  times,  only  to  a  slight  and  temporary  misunderstand- 
ing, arising  from  what  the  teacher  calls  an  unwise  and 
unwarrantable  interference  on  the  part  of  the  committee, 
or  the  trustees,  in  the  arrangements  of  the  school.  Diffi- 
culties of  some  sort  very  often  arise.  In  fact,  a  right 
understanding  of  this  subject,  is,  in  most  cases,  abso- 
lutely essential  to  the  harmony  and  co-operation  of  the 
teacher,  and  the  representatives  of  his  patrons. 

There  are  then,  it  must  be  recollected,  three  different 
parties  connected  with  every  establishment  for  education; 
the  parents  of  the  scholars,  the  teacher,  and  the  pupils 
themselves.  Sometimes,  as  for  example,  in  a  common 
private  school,  the  parents  are  not  organized,  and  what- 
ever influence  they  exert,  they  must  exert  in  their  indi- 
vidual capacity.  At  other  times,  as  in  a  common  district 
or  town  school,  they  are  by  law  organized,  and  the  school 
committee  chosen  for  this  purpose,  are  their  legal  repre- 
sentatives. In  other  instances,  a  board  of  trustees  are 
constituted  by  the  appointment  of  the  founders  of  the 
institution,  or  by  the  legislature  of  a  state,  to  whom  is 
committed  the  oversight  of  its  concerns,  and  who  are  con- 


SCHEMING.  237 

sequently  the  representatives  of  the  founders  and  patrons 
of  the  school. 

There  are  differences  between  these  various  modes  of 
organization  which  I  shall  not  now  stop  to  examine,  as  it 
will  be  sufficiently  correct  for  my  purpose  to  consider  them 
all  as  only  various  ways  of  organizing  the  employers,  in 
the  contract,  by  which  the  teacher  is  employed.  The 
teacher  is  the  agent;  the  patrons,  represented  in  these 
several  ways,  are  the  principals.  When,  therefore,  in 
the  following  paragraphs,  I  use  the  word  employers,  I 
mean  to  be  understood  to  speak  of  the  committee,  or  the 
trustees,  or  the  visiters,  or  the  parents  themselves,  as  the 
case,  in  each  particular  institution,  may  be:  that  is,  the 
persons,  for  whose  purpose,  and  at  whose  expense,  the 
institution  is  maintained ;  or  their  representatives. 

Now  there  is  a  very  reasonable,  and  almost  universally 
established  rule,  which  teachers  are  very  frequently  prone 
to  forget,  viz.,  the  employed  ought  always  to  be  responsible 
to  the  employers,  and  to  be  under  their  direction.  So  obvi- 
ously reasonable  is  this  vule,  and  in  fact,  so  absolutely 
indispensable  in  the  transaction  of  all  the  business  of  life, 
that  it  would  be  idle  to  attempt  to  establish  and  illustrate 
it  here.  It  has,  however,  limitations,  and  it  is  applicable 
to  a  much  greater  extent,  in  some  departments  of  human 
labor,  than  in  others.  It  is  applicable  to  the  business  of 
teaching,  and  though,  I  confess,  that  it  is  somewhat  less 
absolute  and  imperious  here,  still,  it  is  obligatory,  I  be- 
lieve, to  far  greater  extent,  than  teachers  have  been  gen- 
erally willing  to  admit. 

A  young  lady,  I  will  imagine,  wishes  to  introduce  the 
study  of  Botany  into  her  school.  The  parents  or  the 
committee  object;  they  say,  that  they  wish  the  children 
to  confine  their  attention  exclusively  to  the  elementary 
branches  of  education.  "  It  will  do  them  no  good,"  says 
the  chairman  of  the  committee,  "  to  learn  by  heart  some 
dozen  or  two  of  learned  names.  We  want  them  to  read 
well,  to  write  well,  and  to  calculate  well,  and  not  to  waste 
their  time  in  studying  about  pistils  and  stamens  and  non- 
sense." 

Now  what  is  the  dutv  of  the  teacher  in  such  a  case? 


238  SCHEMING. 

Why,  very  plainly  her  duty  is  the  same  as  that  of  the  Gov 
ernor  of  a  state,  where  the  people,  through  their  repre- 
sentatives, regularly  chosen,  negative  a  proposal,  which  he 
considers  calculated  to  promote  the  public  good.  It  is  his 
duty  to  submit  to  the  public  will,  and  though  he  may  prop- 
erly do  all  in  his  power,  to  present  the  subject  to  his  em- 
ployers in  such  a  light,  as  to  lead  them  to  regard  it  as  he 
does,  he  must  still,  until  they  do  so  regard  it,  bow  to  their 
authority;  and  every  magistrate,  who  takes  an  enlarged 
and  comprehensive  view  of  his  duties  as  the  executive  of 
a  republican  community,  will  do  this  without  any  humili- 
ating feelings  of  submission  to  unauthorized  interference 
with  his  plans.  He  will;  on  the  other  hand,  enjoy  the  sat- 
isfaction of  feeling  that  he  confines  himself  to  his  proper 
sphere,  and  leave  to  others,  the  full  possession  of  rights 
which  properly  pertain  to  them. 

It  is  so  with  every  case,  where  the  relation  of  employer 
and  employed  subsists.  You  engage  a  carpenter  to  erect 
a  house  for  you,  and  you  present  your  plan;  instead  of 
going  to  work  arid  executing  your  orders  according  to  your 
wishes,  he  goes  to  criticising  and  condemning  it:  he  finds 
fault  with  this,  and  ridicules  that,  and  tells  you,  you  ought 
to  make  such  and  such  an  alteration  in  it.  It  is  perfectly 
right  for  him  to  give  his  opinion,  in  the  tone  and  spirit  of 
recommendation  or  suggestion,  with  a  distinct  understanding 
that  with  his  employer  rests  the  power  and  the  right  to 
decide.  But  how  many  teachers  take  possession  of  their 
school  room  as  though  it  was^an  empire  in  which  they  are 
supreme,  who  resist  every  interference  of  their  employers, 
as  they  would  an  attack  upon  their  personal  freedom,  and 
who  feel,  that  in  regard  to  every  thing  connected  with 
school,  they  have  really  no  actual  responsibility. 

In  most  cases,  the  employers,  knowing  how  sensitive 
teachers  very  frequently  are  on  this  point,  acquiesce  in  it, 
and  leave  them  to  themselves.  Whenever  in  any  case, 
they  think  that  the  state  of  the  school  requires  their  inter- 
ference, they  come  cautiously  and  fearfully  to  the  teacher, 
as  if  they  were  encroaching  upon  his  rights,  instead  of 
advancing  with  the  confidence  and  directness  with  which 
employers  have  always  aright  to  approach  the  employed; 


SCHEMING.  239 

and  the  teacher,  with  the  view  he  has  insensibly  taken 
of  the  subject,  being  perhaps  confirmed  by  the  tone  and 
manner  which  his  employers  use,  makes  the  conversation, 
quite  as  often,  an  occasion  of  resentment  and  offence  as 
of  improvement.  He  is  silent,  perhaps,  but  in  his  heart 
he  accuses  his  committee  or  his  trustees  of  improper  in- 
terference in  his  concerns,  as  though  it  was  no  part  of 
their  business  to  look  after  work  which  is  going  forward 
for  their  advantage,  and  for  which  they  pay. 

Perhaps  some  individuals,  who  have  had  some  collision 
with  their  trustees  or  committee,  will  ask  me  if  I  mean, 
that  a  teacher  ought  to  be  entirely  and  immediately  under 
the  supervision  and  control  of  the  trustees,  just  as  a  me- 
chanic is  when  employed  by  another  man.  By  no  means. 
There  are  various  circumstances  connected  with  the  nature 
of  this  employment;  the  impossibility  of  the  employers 
fully  understanding  it  in  all  its  details;  and  the  character 
and  the  standing  of  the  teacher  himself,  which  always  will, 
in  matter  of  fact,  prevent  this.  The  employers  always 
will,  in  a  great  many  respects,  place  more  confidence  in 
the  teacher  and  in  his  views,  than  they  will  in  their  own. 
But  still,  the  ultimate  power  is  theirs.  Even  if  they  err, 
— if  they  wish  to  have  a  course  pursued  which  is  mani- 
festly inexpedient  and  wrong,  they  still  have  a  right  to 
decide.  It  is  their  work:  it  is  going  on  at  their  instance, 
and  at  their  expense,  and  the  power  of  ultimate  decision, 
on  all  disputed  questions,  must,  from  the  very  nature  of 
the  case,  rest  with  them.  The  teacher  may,  it  is  true, 
have  his  option  either  to  comply  with  their  wishes  or  to 
seek  employment  in  another  sphere;  but  while  he  remains 
in  the  employ  of  any  persons,  whether  in  teaching  or  in 
any  other  service,  he  is  bound  to  yield  to  the  wishes  of 
his  employers,  when  they  insist  upon  it,  and  to  submit 
pleasantly  to  their  direction,  when  they  shall  claim  their 
undoubted  right  to  direct. 

This  is  to  be  done,  it  must  be  remembered,  when  they 
are  wrong,  as  well  as  when  they  are  right.  The  obliga- 
tion of  the  teacher  is  not  founded  upon  the  superior  wisdom 
of  his  employers,  in  reference  to  the  business  for  which 
they  have  engaged  him,  for  they  are  very  probably  his 


240  SCHEMING. 

inferiors  in  this  respect ;  but  upon  their  right  as  employers, 
to  determine  how  their  own  work  shall  be  done.  A  garden- 
er, we  will  suppose,  is  engaged  by  a  gentleman  to  lay  out 
his  grounds.  The  gardener  goes  to  work,  and  after  a  few 
hours  the  gentleman  comes  out  to  see  how  he  goes  on, 
and  to  give  directions.  He  proposes  something  which 
the  gardener,  who,  to  make  the  case  stronger,  we  will 
suppose  knows  better  that  the  proprietor  of  the  grounds, 
considers  ridiculous  and  absurd;  nay,  we  will  suppose  it 
is  ridiculous  and  absurd.  Now  what  can  the  gardener 
do?  There  are,  obviously,  two  courses.  He  can  say  to 
the  proprietor,  after  a  vain  attempt  to  convince  him  he  is 
wrong,  "  Well,  sir,  I  will  do  just  as  you  say.  The  grounds 
are  yours:  I  have  no  interest  in  it,  or  responsibility,  ex- 
cept to  accomplish  your  wishes."  This  would  be  right. 
Or  he  might  say,  "  Sir,  you  have  a  right  to  direct  upon 
your  own  grounds,  and  I  do  not  wish  to  interfere  with 
your  plans;  but  I  must  ask  you  to  obtain  another  garden- 
er. I  have  a  reputation  at  stake,  and  this  work,  if  I  do  it 
even  at  your  direction,  will  be  considered  as  a  specimen 
of  my  taste  and  of  my  planning,  so  that  I  must  in  justice 
to  myself,  decline  remaining  in  your  employment."  This 
too,  would  be  right,  though  probably,  both  in  the  business 
of  gardening  and  of  teaching,  the  case  ought  to  be  a  strong 
one,  to  render  it  expedient. 

But  it  would  not  be  right  for  him,  after  his  employer 
should  have  gone  away,  to  say  to  himself,  with  a  feeling 
of  resentment  at  the  imaginary  interference;  ((  I  shall  not 
follow  any  such  directions;  I  understand  my  own  trade 
and  shall  receive  no  instructions  in  it  from  him;"  and  then 
disobeying  all  directions,  go  on  and  do  the  work  contrary 
to  the  orders  of  his  employer,  who  alone  has  a  right  to 
decide. 

And  yet  a  great  many  teachers  take  a  course  as  absurd 
and  unjustifiable  as  this  would  be.  Whenever  the  parents, 
or  the  committee,  or  the  trustees  express,  however  mildly 
and  properly,  their  w'ishes  in  regard  to  the  manner  in  which 
they  desire  to  have  their  own  work  performed,  their  pride 
is  at  once  aroused.  They  seem  to  feel  it  an  indignity,  to 
act  in  any  other  way,  than  just  in  accordance  with  their 


SCHEMING.  241 

own  will  and  pleasure ;  and  they  absolutely  refuse  to  com- 
ply, resenting  the  interference  as  an  insult.  Or  else,  if 
they  apparently  yield,  it  is  with  mere  cold  civility,  and  en- 
tirely without  any  honest  desires  to  carry  the  wishes  thus 
expressed,  into  actual  effect. 

Parents  may,  indeed,  often  misjudge.  A  good  teacher 
will,  however,  soon  secure  their  confidence,  and  they  will 
acquiesce  in  his  opinion.  But  they  ought  to  be  watch- 
ful ;  and  the  teacher  ought  to  feel  and  acknowledge  their 
authority,  on  all  questions  connected  with  the  education 
of  their  children.  They  have  originally  entire  power  in 
regard  to  the  course  which  is  to  be  pursued  with  them. 
Providence  has  made  the  parents  responsible  and  wholly 
responsible  for  the  manner  in  which  their  children  are 
prepared  for  the  duties  of  this  life,  and  it  is  interesting  to 
observe,  how  very  cautious  the  laws  of  society  are,  about 
interfering  with  the  parent's  wishes,  in  regard  to  the 
education  of  the  child.  There  are  many  cases,  in  which 
enlightened  governments  might  make  arrangements  which 
would  be  better  than  those  made  by  the  parents,  if  they 
are  left  to  themselves.  But  they  will  not  do  it ;  they  ought 
not  to  do  it.  God  has  placed  the  responsibility  in  the 
hands  of  the  father  and  mother,  and  unless  the  manner  in 
which  it  is  exercised  is  calculated  to  endanger  or  to  in- 
jure the  community,  there  can  rightfully  be  no  interference 
except  that  of  argument  and  persuasion. 

It  ought  also  to  be  considered  that  upon  the  parents  will 
come  the  consequences  of  the  good  or  bad  education  of  their 
children,  and  not  upon  the  teacher,  and  consequently  it  is 
right  that  they  should  direct.  The  teacher  remains,  per- 
haps, a  few  months  with  his  charge,  and  then  goes  to 
other  places,  and  perhaps  hears  of  them  no  more.  He 
has  thus  very  little  at  stake.  The  parent  has  every  thing 
at  stake,  and  it  is  manifestly  unjust  to  give  one  man  the 
power  of  deciding,  while  he  escapes  all  the  consequences 
of  his  mistakes,  if  he  makes  any,  and  to  take  away  all 
the  power  from  those,  upon  whose  heads,  all  the  suffering, 
which  will  follow  an  abuse  of  the  power,  must  descend. 

21 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

REPORTS    OF   CASES. 

THERE  is  perhaps  no  way,  by  which  a  writer  can  more 
effectually  explain  his  views  on  the  subject  of  education, 
than  by  presenting  a  great  variety  of  actual  cases,  whether 
real  or  imaginary,  and  describing  particularly  the  course 
of  treatment  he  would  recommend  in  each.  This  method 
of  communicating  knowledge  is  very  extensively  resorted 
to  in  the  medical  profession,  where  writers  detail  particu- 
lar cases,  and  report  the  symptoms  and  the  treatment  for 
each  succeeding  day,  so  that  the  reader  may  almost  fancy 
himself  actually  a  visiter  at  the  sick  bed,  and  the  nature 
and  effects  of  the  various  prescriptions  become  fixed  in  the 
mind,  with  almost  as  much  distinctness  and  permanency 
as  actual  experience  would  give. 

This  principle  has  been  kept  in  view,  the  reader  may 
perhaps  think,  too  closely,  in  all  the  chapters  of  this  vol- 
ume; almost  every  point  brought  up,  having  been  illus- 
trated by  anecdotes  and  narratives.  I  propose,  however, 
devoting  one  chapter  now,  to  presenting  a  number  of  mis- 
cellaneous cases,  without  any  attempt  to  arrange  them. 
Sometimes  the  case  will  be  merely  stated,  the  reader  being 
left  to  draw  the  inference;  at  others,  such  remarks  will  be 
added  as  the  case  suggests.  All  will  however  be  intended  to 
answer  some  useful  purpose,  either  to  exhibit  good  or  bad 
management  and  its  consequences,  or  to  bring  to  view  some 
trait  of  human  nature,  as  it  exhibits  itself  in  children, 
which  it  may  be  desirable  for  the  teacher  to  know.  Let 
it  be  understood,  however,  that  these  cases  are  not  select- 
ed with  reference  to  their  being  strange,  or  extraordinary. 
They  are  rather  chosen  because  they  are  common,  i.  e. 
they,  or  cases  similar,  will  be  constantly  occurring  to  the 


REPORTS  OF  CASES.  243 

teacher,  and  reading  such  a  chapter  will  be  the  best  sub- 
stitute for  experience  which  the  teacher  can  have.  Some 
are  descriptions  of  literary  exercises  or  plans  which  the 
reader  can  adopt  in  classes,  or  with  a  whole  school;  others 
are  cases  of  dicipline, — good  or  bad  management,  which 
the  teacher  can  imitate  or  avoid.  The  stories  are  from 
various  sources,  and  are  the  results  of  the  experience  of 
several  individuals. 

1.  HATS  AND  BONNETS.  The  master  of  a  district  school 
was  accidentally  looking  out  of  the  window  one  day,  and 
he  saw  one  of  the  boys  throwing  stones  at  a  hat,  which  was 
put  up  for  that  purpose  upon  the  fence.  He  said  nothing 
about  it  at  the  time,  but  made  a  memorandum  of  the  oc- 
currence, that  he  might  bring  it  before  the  school,  at  the 
proper  time.  When  the  hour,  set  apart  for  attending  to 
the  general  business  of  the  school,  had  arrived,  and  all 
were  still,  he  said, 

"  I  saw  one  of  the  boys  throwing  stones  at  a  hat  to-day, 
did  he  do  right  or  wrong?" 

There  were  one  or  two  faint  murmurs  which  sounded 
like  "  Wrong,"  but  the  boys  generally  made  no  answer. 

"  Perhaps  it  depends  a  little  upon  the  question  whose 
hat  it  was.  Do  you  think  it  does  depend  upon  that?" 

"  Yes  sir." 

"  Well,  suppose  then  it  was  not  his  own  hat,  and  he  was 
throwing  stones  at  it  without  the  owner's  consent,  would 
it  be  plain  in  that  case,  whether  he  was  doing  right  or 
wrong  ? ' ' 

"  Yes  sir;  wrong,"  was  the  universal  reply. 

"  Suppose  it  was  his  own  hat,  would  he  have  been 
right  ?  Has  a  boy  a  right  to  do  what  he  pleases  with  his 
own  hat?" 

"  Yes  sir,"  "  Yes  sir,"  "  No  sir,"  "  No  sir,"  answered 
the  boys  confusedly. 

"  I  do  not  know  whose  hat  it  was.  If  the  boy  who  did 
it  is  willing  to  rise  and  tell  me,  it  will  help  us  to  decide 
this  question." 

The  boy  knowing  that  a  severe  punishment  was  not 
in  such  a  case  to  be  anticipated,  and  in  fact,  apparently 


244  REPORTS  OF  CASES. 

pleased  with  the  idea  of  exonerating  himself  from  the 
blame  of  wilfully  injuring  the  property  of  another,  rose 
and  said, 

"  I  suppose  it  was  I,  sir,  who  did  it,  and  it  was  my  own 
hat?" 

"  Well,"  said  the  master,  "1  am  glad  you  are  willing 
to  tell  frankly  how  it  was;  but  let  us  look  at  this  case. 
There  are  two  senses  in  which  a  hat  may  be  said  to 
belong  to  any  person.  It  may  belong  to  him  because  he 
bought  it  and  paid  for  it,  or  it  may  belong  to  him  because 
it  fits  him,  and  he  wears  it.  In  other  words  a  person  may 
have  a  hat,  as  his  property,  or  he  may  have  it  only  as  a 
part  of  his  dress.  JVow  you  see,  that  according  to  the 
first  of  these  senses,  all  the  hats  in  this  school,  belong  to 
your  fathers.  There  is  not  in  fact  a  single  boy  in  this 
school  who  has  a  hat  of  his  own." 

The  boys  laughed. 

"Is  not  this  the  fact?" 

"Yes  sir." 

"  It  certainly  is  so,  though  I  suppose  James  did  not  con- 
sider it.  Your  fathers  bought  your  hats.  They  worked 
for  them,  and  paid  for  them.  You  are  only  the  wearers, 
and  consequently  every  generous  boy,  and  in  fact  every 
honest  boy,  will  be  careful  of  the  property  which  is  intrust- 
ed to  him,  but  which  strictly  speaking  is  not  his  own." 

2.  MISTAKES.  A  wide  difference  must  always  be  made 
between  mistakes  arising  from  carelessness,  and  those  re- 
sulting from  circumstances  beyond  control;  such  as  want 
of  sufficient  data,  &c.  The  former  are  always  censurable; 
the  latter  never;  for  they  may  be  the  result  of  correct  rea- 
soning from  insufficient  data,  and  it  is  the  reasoning  only 
for  which  the  child  is  responsible. 

c<  What  do  you  suppose  a  prophet  is?"  said  an  instruc- 
ter  to  a  class  of  little  boys.  The  word  occurred  in  their 
reading  lesson. 

The  scholars  all  hesitated;  at  last  one  venture^}  to  reply: 

"  If  a  man  should  sell  a  yoke  of  oxen,  and  get  more  for 
them  than  they  are  worth,  he  would  be  a  prophet." 

*c  Yes,"  said  the  instructor,  "  that  is  right,"  that  is  one 


REPORTS  OP  CASES.  245 

kind  of  profit,  but  this  is  another  and  a  little  different," 
and  he  proceeded  to  explain  the  word,  and  the  difference 
of  the  spelling. 

This  child  had,  without  doubt,  heard  of  some  transac- 
tion of  the  kind  which  he  described,  and  had  observed 
that  the  word  profit  was  applied  to  it.  Now  the  care  which 
he  had  exercised  in  attending  to  it  at  the  time,  and  re- 
membering it  when  the  same  word,  (for  the  difference  in 
the  spelling  he  of  course  knew  nothing  about,)  occurred 
again,  was  really  commendable.  The  fact,  which  is  a  mere 
accident,  that  we  affix  very  different  significations  to  the 
same  sound,  was  unknown.  The  fault,  if  anywhere,  was 
in  the  language  and  not  in  him;  for  he  reasoned  cor- 
rectly from  the  data  he  possessed,  and  he  deserved  credit 
for  it. 

3.  TARDINESS.  "  My  duty  to  this  school,"  said  a  teach- 
er to  his  pupils,  "  demands,  as  I  suppose  you  all  admit, 
that  I  should  require  you  all  to  be  here  punctually  at  the 
time  appointed  for  the  commencement  of  the  school.  I 
have  done  nothing  on  this  subject  yet,  for  I  wished  to  see 
whether  you  would  not  come  early,  on  principle.  I  wish 
now  however  to  inquire  in  regard  to  this  subject,  and  to 
ascertain  how  many  have  been  tardy,  and  to  consider  what 
must  be  done  hereafter." 

He  made  the  inquiries  and  ascertained  pretty  nearly 
how  many  had  been  tardy,  and  how  often  within  a  week. 

The  number  was  found  to  be  so  great,  that  the  scholars 
admitted  that  something  ought  to  be  done. 

"  What  shall  I  do  ?  "  asked  he.  "  Can  any  one  pro- 
pose a  plan  which  will  remedy  the  difficulty?" 

There  was  no  answer. 

"  The  easiest  and  pleasantest  way  to  secure  punctual- 
ity, is  for  the  scholars  to  come  early  of  their  own  accord, 
upon  principle.  It  is  evident  from  the  reports,  that  many 
of  you  do  so;  but  some  do  not.  Now  there  is  no  other 
plan  which  will  not  be  attended  with  very  serious  difficul- 
ty, but  I  am  willing  to  adopt  the  one  which  will  be  pleas- 

*  The  above,  and  one  or  two  of  the  succeeding  articles  have  been 
before  published,  in  periodicals. 

21* 


246  REPORTS  OF  CASES. 

antest  to  yourselves,  if  it  will  be  likely  to  accomplish  the 
object.  Has  any  one  any  plan  to  propose." 

There  was  a  pause. 

"It  would  evidently/'  continued  the  teacher,  "  be  the 
easiest  for  me  to  leave  this  subject,  and  do  nothing  about 
it.  It  is  of  no  personal  consequence  to  me,  whether  you 
come  early  or  not,  but  as  long  as  I  hold  this  office,  I  must 
be  faithful,  and  I  have  no  doubt  the  school  committee, 
if  they  knew  how  many  of  you  were  tardy,  would  think  I 
ought  to  do  something  to  diminish  the  evil. 

"  The  best  plan  I  can  think  of,  is  that  all  who  are  tar- 
dy should  lose  their  recess." 

The  boys  looked  rather  anxiously  at  one  another,  but 
continued  silent. 

"  There  is  a  great  objection  to  this  plan  from  the  fact 
that  a  boy  is  sometimes  necessarily  absent,  and  by  this 
rule  he  will  lose  his  recess  with  the  rest,  so  that  the  inno- 
cent will  be  punished  with  the  guilty." 

"I  should  think,  sir,"  said  William,  "that  those  who 
are  necessarily  tardy,  might  be  excused." 

"  Yes,  I  should  be  very  glad  to  excuse  them,  if  I  could 
find  out  who  they  are." 

The  boys  seemed  to  be  surprised  at  this  remark,  as  if 
they  thought  it  would  not  be  a  difficult  matter  to  decide. 

"  How  can  I  tell  ?"  asked  the  master. 

"  You  can  hear  their  excuses,  and  then  decide." 

"Yes,"  said  the  teacher,  "but  here  are  fifteen  or 
twenty  boys  tardy  this  morning;  now  how  long  would  it 
take  me  to  hear  their  excuses,  and  understand  each  case 
thoroughly,  so  that  I  could  really  tell  whether  they  were 
tardy  from  good  reasons  or  not?" 

No  answer. 

"  Should  you  not  think  it  would  take  a  minute  apiece?" 

"Yes  sir." 

"It  would  undoubtedly,  and  even  then  I  could  not  in 
many  cases  tell.  It  would  take  fifteen  minutes  at  least. 
I  cannot  do  this  in  school-hours,  for  I  have  not  time,  and 
if  I  do  it  in  recess,  it  will  consume  the  whole  of  every  re- 
cess. Now  I  need  the  rest  of  a  recess,  as  well  as  you,  and 
it  does  not  seem  to  me  to  be  just  that  I  should  lose  the  whole 


REPORTS    OF    CASES.  247 

of  mine,  every  day,  and  spend  it  in  a  most  unpleasant  busi- 
ness, when  I  take  pains,  myself,  to  come  punctually  every 
morning.  Would  it  be  just?" 

"No  sir." 

"  I  think  it  would  be  less  unjust  to  deprive  all  of  their 
recess  who  are  tardy,  for  then  the  loss  of  a  recess  by  a 
boy  who  had  not  been  to  blame,  would  not  be  very  com- 
mon, and  the  evil  would  be  divided  among  the  whole,  but 
in  the  plan  of  my  hearing  the  excuses,  it  would  all  come 
upon  one." 

After  a  short  pause  one  of  the  boys  said  that  they  might 
be  required  to  bring  written  excuses. 

"  Yes  that  is  another  plan,"  said  the  teacher,  "  but 
there  are  objections  to  it.  Can  any  of  you  think  what 
they  are?  I  suppose  you  have  all  been,  either  at  this 
school,  or  at  some  other,  required  to  bring  written  ex- 
cuses, so  that  you  have  seen  the  plan  tried:  now  have  you 
never  noticed  any  objection  to  it?" 

One  boy  said  that  it  gave  the  parents  a  great  deal  of 
trouble  at  home. 

"  Yes,"  said  the  teacher,  (( this  is  a  great  objection;  it 
is  often  very  inconvenient  to  write.  But  that  is  not  the 
greatest  difficulty;  can  any  of  you  think  of  any  other?  " 

There  was  a  pause. 

"  Do  you  think  that  these  written  excuses  are,  after  all, 
a  fair  test  of  the  real  reasons  for  tardiness?  I  understand 
that  sometimes  boys  will  tease  their  fathers  or  mothers 
for  an  excuse,  when  they  do  not  deserve  it,  t  Yes  sir,5 
and  sometimes  they  will  loiter  about  when  sent  of  an 
errand  before  school,  knowing  that  they  can  get  a  written 
excuse  when  they  might  easily  have  been  punctual." 

"  Yes  sir,  Yes  sir,"  said  the  boys. 

"Well,  now,  if  we  adopt  this  plan,  some  unprincipled 
boy  would  always  contrive  to  have  an  excuse,  whether 
necessarily  tardy  or  not  ;  and  besides,  each  parent  would 
have  a  different  principle  and  a  different  opinion  as  to  what 
was  a  reasonable  excuse,  so  that  there  would  be  no  uni- 
formity, and  consequently  no  justice  in  the  operation  of 
the  system." 

The  boys  admitted  the  truth  of  this,  and  as  no  other  plan 


248  REPORTS    OF    CASES. 

was  presented,  the  rule  was  adopted  of  requiring  all  those 
who  were  tardy,  to  remain  in  their  seats  during  the  recess, 
whether  they  were  necessarily  tardy  or  not.  The  plan 
very  soon  diminished  the  number  of  loiterers. 

4.  HELEN'S  LESSON.  The  possibility  of  being  inflexi- 
bly firm  in  measures,  and  at  the  same  time  gentle  and  mild 
in  manners  and  language,  is  happily  illustrated  in  the  fol- 
lowing description,  which  is  based  on  an  incident  narrated 
by  Mrs.  Sherwood. 

"  Mrs.  M.  had  observed  even  during  the  few  days  that 
Helen  had  been  under  her  care,  that  she  was  totally  un- 
accustomed to  habits  of  diligence  and  application.  After 
making  all  due  allowance  for  long  indulged  habits  of  in- 
dolence and  inattention,  she  one  morning  assigned  an  easy 
lesson  to  her  pupil,  informing  her  at  the  same  time,  that 
she  should  hear  it  immediately  before  dinner.  Helen 
made  no  objections  to  the  plan,  but  she  silently  resolved 
not  to  perform  the  required  task.  Being  in  some  measure 
a  stranger,  she  thought  her  aunt  would  not  insist  upon 
perfect  obedience,  and  besides  in  her  estimation,  she  was 
too  old  to  be  treated  like  a  child. 

"During  the  whole  morning,  Helen  exerted  herself  to 
be  mild  and  obliging;  her  conduct  towards  her  aunt  was 
uncommonly  affectionate.  By  these,  and  various  other 
artifices,  she  endeavored  to  gain  her  first  victory.  Mean- 
while, Mrs.  M.  quietly  pursued  her  various  avocations, 
without  apparently  noticing  Helen's  conduct.  At  length 
dinner  hour  arrived;  the  lesson  was  called  for,  and  found 
unprepared.  Mrs.  M.  told  Helen  she  was  sorry  she  had 
not  got  the  lesson,  and  went  on  to  explain  one  or  two 
sentences  more  fully,  and  concluded,  by  saying  that  she 
hoped  it  would  be  learned  before  tea-time. 

"  Helen,  finding  she  was  not  to  come  to  the  table,  began 
to  be  a  little  alarmed.  She  was  acquainted  in  some  meas- 
ure with  the  character  of  her  aunt,  still  she  hoped  to  be 
allowed  to  partake  of  the  dessert  as  she  had  been  accus- 
tomed to  on  similar  occasions  at  home,  and  soon  regained 
her  wonted  composure.  But  the  dinner  cloth  was  re- 
moved, and  there  sat  Helen,  suffering  not  a  little  from 


REPORTS    OF    CASES.  249 

hunger;  still  she  would  not  complain;  she  meant  to  con- 
vince her  aunt  that  she  was  not  moved  by  trifles. 

"A  walk  had  been  proposed  for  the  afternoon,  and  as 
the  hour  drew  near,  Helen  made  preparations  to  accom- 
pany the  party.  Mrs.  M.  reminded  her  of  her  lesson,  but 
she  just  noticed  the  remark  by  a  toss  of  the  head,  and  was 
soon  in  the  green  fields,  apparently  the  gayest  of  the  gay. 
After  her  return  from  the  excursion,  she  complained  of  a 
head-ache  which  in  fact  she  had;  she  threw  herself  lan- 
guidly on  the  sofa,  sighed  deeply,  and  took  up  her  His- 
tory. 

ft  Tea  was  now  on  the  table,  and  most  tempting  looked 
the  white  loaf.  Mrs.  M.  again  heard  the  pupil  recite,  but 
was  sorry  to  find  the  lesson  still  imperfectly  prepared.  She 
left  her,  saying  she  thought  an  half  hour's  study  would  con- 
quer all  the  difficulties  she  found  in  the  lesson. 

"  During  all  this  time,  Mrs.  M.  appeared  so  perfect- 
ly calm,  composed,  and  even  kind,  and  so  regardless  of 
sighs  and  doleful  exclamations,  that  Helen  entirely  lost  her 
equanimity  and  let  her  tears  flow  freely  and  abundantly. 
Her  mother  was  always  moved  by  her  tears,  and  would 
not  her  aunt  relent?  No.  Mrs.  M.  quietly  performed  the 
duties  of  the  table,  and  ordered  the  tea-equipage  to  be 
removed.  This  latter  movement  brought  Helen  to  reflec- 
tion. It  is  useless  to  resist,  thought  she,  indeed  why  should 
I  wish  to.  Nothing  too  much  has  been  required  of  me. 
How  ridiculous  I  have  made  myself  appear,  in  the  eyes  of 
my  aunt,  and  even  of  the  domestics. 

"In  less  than  an  hour,  she  had  the  satisfaction  of  reciting 
her  lesson  perfectly;  her  aunt  made  no  comments  on  the 
occasion,  but  assigned  her  the  next  less  on,  and  went  on 
sewing.  Helen  did  not  expect  this;  she  had  anticipated 
a  refreshing  cup  of  tea,  after  the  long  siege.  She  had 
expected  that  even  something  nicer  than  usual  would 
be  necessary  to  compensate  her  for  past  sufferings.  At 
length,  worn  out  by  long  continued  watching  and  fasting, 
she  went  to  the  closet,  provided  herself  with  a  cracker, 
and  retired  to  bed  to  muse  deliberately  on  the  strange 
character  of  her  aunt. 

f<  Teachers  not  unfrequently  threaten  their  pupils  with 


250  REPORTS    OF    CASES. 

some  proper  punishment,  but  when  obliged  to  put  the  threat 
into  execution,  contrive  in  some  indirect  way,  to  abate  its 
rigor  and  thus  destroy  all  its  effects.  For  example,  a 
mother  was  in  the  habit,  when  her  little  boy  ran  beyond 
his  proscribed  play-ground,  of  putting  him  into  solitary 
confinement.  On  such  occasions,  she  was  very  careful 
to  have  some  amusing  book,  or  diverting  plaything  in  a 
conspicuous  part  of  the  room,  and  not  unfrequently  a  piece 
of  gingerbread  was  given  to  solace  the  runaway.  The 
mother  thought  it  very  strange  her  little  boy  should  so  often 
transgress,  when  he  knew  what  to  expect  from  such  a  course 
of  conduct.  The  boy  was  wiser  than  the  mother;  he  knew 
perfectly  well  how  to  manage.  He  could  play  with  the 
boys  beyond  the  garden  gate,  and  if  detected,  to  be  sure 
he  was  obliged  to  spend  a  quiet  hour  in  the  pleasant  par- 
lor. But  this  was  not  intolerable  as  long  as  he  could 
expect  a  paper  of  sugar-plums,  a  cake,  or  at  least  some- 
thing amply  to  compensate  him  for  the  loss  of  a  game  at 
marbles." 

5.  COMPLAINTS  OP  LONG  LESSONS.  A  college  officer 
assigned  lessons  which  the  idle  and  ignorant  members  of 
the  class  thought  too  long.  They  murmured  for  a  time, 
and  at  last  openly  complained.  The  other  members  of 
the  class  could  say  nothing  in  behalf  of  the  professor,  awed 
by  the  greatest  of  all  fears  to  a  collegian,  the  fear  of  being 
called  a  "fisher,"  or  a  "  blueskin."  The  professor  paid 
no  attention  to  the  petitions  and  complaints  which  were 
poured  in  upon  him,  and  which,  though  originated  by  the 
idle,  all  were  compelled  to  vote  for.  He  coldly,  and  with 
uncompromising  dignity,  went  on:  the  excitement  in  the 
class  increased,  and  what  is  called  a  college  rebellion, 
with  all  its  disastrous  consequences  to  the  infatuated  rebels, 
ensued. 

Another  professor  had  the  dexterity  to  manage  in  a  dif- 
ferent way.  After  hearing  that  there  was  dissatisfaction, 
he  brought  up  the  subject  as  follows: — 

"  I  understand,  gentlemen,  that  you  consider  your  les- 
sons too  long.  Perhaps  I  have  overrated  the  abilities  of 
the  class,  but  I  have  not  intended  to  assign  you  more  than 


REPORTS    OF    CASES.  251 

you  can  accomplish.  I  feel  no  other  interest  in  the  sub- 
ject, than  the  pride  and  pleasure  it  would  give  me,  to  have 
my  class  stand  high,  in  respect  to  the  amount  of  ground 
it  has  gone  over,  when  you  come  to  examination.  I  pro- 
pose, therefore,  that  you  appoint  a  committee  in  whose 
abilities  and  judgment  you  can  confide,  and  let  them  ex- 
amine this  subject  and  report.  They  might  ascertain  how 
much  other  classes  have  done,  and  how  much  is  expedient 
for  this  class  to  attempt;  and  then,  by  estimating  the  num- 
ber of  recitations  assigned  to  this  study,  they  can  easily 
determine  what  should  be  the  length  of  the  lessons." 

The  plan  was  adopted,  and  the  report  put  an  end  to  the 
difficulty. 

6.  ENGLISH  COMPOSITION.  The  great  prevailing  fault 
of  writers  in  this  country,  is  an  affectation  of  eloquence. 
It  is  almost  universally  the  fashion  to  aim  not  at  strik- 
ing thoughts,  simply  and  clearly'expressed,  but  at  splendid 
language,  glowing  imagery,  and  magnificent  periods.  It 
arises,  perhaps,  from  the  fact  that  public  speaking  is  the 
almost  universal  object  of  ambition,  and  consequently,  both 
at  school  and  at  college,  nothing  is  thought  of  but  oratory. 
Vain  attempts  at  oratory,  result  in  nine  cases  out  of  ten, 
in  grandiloquence  and  empty  verbiage; — common  thoughts 
expressed  in  pompous  periods. 

The  teacher  should  guard  against  this,  and  assign  to 
children  such  subjects  as  are  within  the  field  of  childish 
observation.  A  little  skill  on  his  part  will  soon  determine 
the  question  which  kind  of  writing  shall  prevail  in  his 
school.  The  following  specimens,  both  written  with  some 
skill,  will  illustrate  the  two  kinds  of  writing  alluded  to. 
Both  were  written  by  pupils  of  the  same  age,  twelve;  one 
a  boy,  the  other  a  girl.  The  subjects  were  assigned  by 
the  teacher.  I  need  not  say  that  the  following  was  the 
writer's  first  attempt  at  composition,  and  that  it  is  printed 
without  alteration. 

THE  PAINS  OF  A  SAILOR'S  LIFE. 

The  joyful  sailor  embarks  on  board  of  his  ship,  the  sails  are  spread 
to  catch  the  playful  gale,  swift  as  an  arrow  he  cuts  the  rolling  wave. 


252  REPORTS    OF    CASES. 

A  few  days  thus  sporting  on  the  briny  wave,  when  suddenly  the  sky 
is  overspread  with  clouds,  the  rain  descends  in  torrents,  the  sails  are 
lowered,  the  gale  begins,  the  vessel  is  carried  with  great  velocity,  and 
the  shrouds  unable  to  support  the  tottering  mast,  gives  way  to  the 
furious  tempest ;  the  vessel  is  drove  among  the  rocks,  is  sprung  aleak, 
the  sailor  works  at  the  pumps,  till,  faint  and  weary,  is  heard  from  be- 
low, six  feet  of  water  in  the  hold,  the  boats  are  got  ready,  but  before 
they  are  into  them,  the  vessel  dashed  against  a  reef  of  rocks,  some  in 
despair  throw  themselves  into  the  sea,  others  get  on  the  rocks  without 
any  clothes  or  provisions,  and  linger  a  few  days,  perhaps  weeks 
or  months,  living  on  shell  fish  or  perhaps  taken  up  by  some  ship. 
Others  get  on  pieces  of  the  wreck,  and  perhaps  be  cast  on  some  for- 
eign country,  where  perhaps  he  may  be  taken  by  the  natives,  and  sold 
into  slavery  where  he  never  more  returns. 

In  regard  to  the  following  specimen,  it  should  be  stated 
that  when  the  subject  was  assigned,  the  pupil  was  directed 
to  see  how  precisely  she  could  imitate  the  language  and 
conversation  which  two  little  children  really  lost  in  the 
woods  would  use.  While  writing,  therefore,  her  mind  was 
in  pursuit  of  the  natural,  and  the  simple,  not  of  the  elo- 
quent. 

Two  CHILDREN  LOST  iy  THE  WOODS. 

Emily.  Loot  here  !  see  how  many  berries  I've  got.  I  don't  be- 
lieve you've  got  so  many. 

Charles.  Yes,  L'm  sure  1  have.  My  basket 's  most  full;  and  if 
we  hurry,  we  shall  get  ever  so  many  before  we  go  home.  So  pick 
away  as  fast  as  you  can,  Emily. 

Emily.  There  mine  is  full.  Now  we'll  go  and  find  some  flow- 
ers for  mother.  You  know  somebody  told  us  there  were  some  red 
ones,  close  to  that  rock. 

Charles.  Well,  so  we  will.  We'll  leave  our  baskets  here,  and 
come  back  and  get  them. 

Emily.     But  if  we  can't  find  our  way  back,  what  shall  we  do? 

Charles.  Poh  !  I  can  find  the  way  back.  I  only  want  a  quarter  to 
seven  years  old,  and  1  shan't  lose  myself,  I  know. 

Emily.  Well !  we've  got;  flowers  enough,  and  now  I'm  tired  and 
want  to  go  home. 

Charles.     I  don't,  but  if  you  are  tired  we'll  go  and  find  our  baskets. 

Emily.  Where  do  you  think  they  are  ?  We've  been  looking  a 
great  while  for  them.  I  know  we  are  lost,  for  when  we  went  after 
the  flowers  we  only  turned  once,  and  coming  back,  we  have  turned 
three  times. 

Charles.  Have  we  ?  Well  never  mind,  I  guess  we  shall  find 
them. 

Emily.    I'm  afraid  we  shan't.    Do  let's  run. 


REPORTS    OF    CASES.  253 

Charles.  Well  so  do.  Oh,  Emily  !  here's  a  brook,  and  I  am  sure 
we  didn't  pass  any  brook,  going. 

Emily.  Oh,  dear  !  we  must  be  lost.  Hark  !  Charles  !  didn't  you 
hear  that  dreadful  noise  just  now  ?  Wasn't  it  a  bear  ? 

Charles.  Poll !  I  should  love  to  see  a  bear  here.  I  guess  if  he 
should  come  near  me,  I  would  give  him  one  good  slap  that  would 
make  him  feel  pretty  bad.  I  could  kill  him  at  the  first  hit. 

Emily.  I  should  like  to  see  you  taking  hold  of  a  bear.  Why 
didn't  you  know  bears  were  stronger  than  men  ?  But  only  see  how 
dark  it  grows;  we  shan't  see  Ma'  to-night,  I'm  afraid. 

Charles.     So  am  I  :  do  let's  run  some  more. 

Emily.  O  Charles,  do  you  believe  we  shall  ever  find  the  way  out 
of  this  dreadful  long  wood  ? 

Charles.     Let's  scream,  and  see  if  somebody  wont  come. 

Emily.     Well,  (screaming)  Ma'  i  Ma'! 

Charles,     (screaming  also)  Pa'  !  Pa' ! 

Emily.  Oh,  dear !  there's  the  sun  setting.  It  will  be  dreadfully 
dark  by  and  by,  won't  it  ? 

We  have  given  enough  for  a  specimen.  The  compo- 
sition though  faulty  in  many  respects,  illustrates  the  point 
we  had  in  view. 

7.  INSINCERE  CONFESSION.  An  assistant  in  a  school 
informed  the  Principal  that  she  had  some  difficulty  in  pre- 
serving order  in  a  certain  class,  composed  of  email  chil- 
dren. The  Principal  accordingly  went  into  the  class,  and 
something  like  the  following  dialogue  ensued. 

"  Your  teacher  informs  me,"  said  the  Principal,  "  that 
there  is  not  perfect  order  in  this  class.  Now  if  you  are 
satisfied  that  there  has  not  been  order,  and  wish  to  help 
me  discover  and  correct  the  fault,  we  can  do  it  very  easi- 
ly. If,  on  the  other  hand,  you  do  not.  wish  to  co-operate 
with  rne,  it  will  be  a  little  more  difficult  for  me  to  correct 
it,  and  I  must  take  a  different  course.  Now  I  wish  to 
know,  at  the  outset,  whether  you  do  or  do  not  wish  to  help 
me." 

A  faint  "  Yes  sir,"  was  murmured  through  the  class. 

"  I  do  not  wish  you  to  assist  me,  unless  you  really  and 
honestly  desire  it  yourselves;  and  if  you  undertake  to  do 
it,  you  must  do  it  honestly.  The  first  thing  which  will 
be  necessary,  will  be  an  open  and  thorough  exposure  of 
all  which  has  been  wrong,  and  this  you  know  will  be  un- 
pleasant. But  I  will  put  the  question  to  vote,  by  asking 


254  REPORTS    OF    CASES 

how  many  are  willing  that  I  should  know,  entirely  and 
fully,  all  that  they  have  done  in  this  class,  that  has  been 
wrong." 

Very  nearly  all  the  hands  were  raised  at  once,  prompt- 
ly, and  the  others  were  gradually  brought  up,  though  with 
more  or  less  of  hesitation. 

"  Are  you  willing,  not  only  to  tell  me  yourselves  what 
you  have  done,  but  also,  in  case  any  one  has  forgotten 
something  which  she  has  done,  that  others  should  tell  me 
of  it?" 

The  hands  were  all  raised. 

After  obtaining  thus  from  the  class  a  distinct  and  uni- 
versal expression  of  willingness  that  all  the  facts  should 
be  made  known,  the  Principal  called  upon  all  those  who 
had  any  thing  to  state,  to  raise  their  hands,  and  those  who 
raised  them,  had  opportunity  to  say  what  they  wished. 
A  great  number  of  very  trifling  incidents  were  mentioned, 
such  as  could  not  have  produced  any  difficulty  in  the  class, 
and  consequently  could  not  have  been  the  real  instances 
of  disorder  alluded  to.  Or  at  least,  it  was  evident  if  they 
were,  that  in  the  statement,  they  must  have  been  so  pal- 
liated and  softened,  that  a  really  honest  confession  had 
not  been  made.  This  result  might  in  such  a  case,  have 
been  expected.  Such  is  human  nature,  that  in  nine  cases 
out  of  ten,  unless  such  a  result  had  been  particularly 
guarded  against,  it  would  have  inevitably  followed. 

Not  only  will  such  a  result  follow  in  individual  cases 
like  this,  but  unless  the  teacher  watches  and  guards 
against  it,  it  will  grow  into  a  habit.  I  mean  boys  will  get 
a  sort  of  an  idea  that  it  is  a  fine  thing  to  confess  their 
faults,  and  by  a  show  of  humility  and  frankness  will  de- 
ceive their  teacher,  and  perhaps  themselves,  by  a  sort  of 
acknowledgement,  .which  in  fact  exposes  nothing  of  the 
guilt  which  the  transgressor  professes  to  expose.  A  great 
many  cases  occur,  where  teachers  are  pleased  with  the 
confession  of  faults,  and  scholars  perceive  it,  and  the  lat- 
ter get  into  the  habit  of  coming  to  the  teacher,  when 
they  have  done  something  which  they  think  may  get  them 
into  difficulty ,»  and  make  a  sort  of  half  confession,  which, 
by  bringing  forward  every  ^palliating  circumstance,  and 


REPORTS  OF  CASES  255 

suppressing  every  thing  of  different  character,  keeps  en- 
tirely out  of  view  all  the  real  guilt  of  the  transgression. 
The  criminal  is  praised  by  the  teacher  for  the  frankness 
and  honesty  of  the  confession,  and  his  fault  is  freely  for- 
given. He  goes  away  therefore  well  satisfied  with  him- 
self, when  in  fact  he  has  been  only  submitting  to  a  little 
mortification,  voluntarily,  to  avoid  the  danger  of  a  greater; 
much  in  the  same  spirit  with  that  which  leads  a  man  to 
receive  the  small-pox  by  inoculation,  to  avoid  the  danger 
of  taking  it  in  the  natural  way. 

The  teacher  who  accustoms  his  pupils  to  confess  their 
faults,  voluntarily,  ought  to  guard  carefully  against  this 
danger.  When  such  a  case  as  the  one  just  described  oc- 
curs, it  will  afford  a  favorable  opportunity  of  showing  dis- 
tinctly to  pupils  the  difference  between  an  honest  and  an 
hypocritical  confession.  In  this  instance,  the  teacher  pro- 
ceeded thus; 

11  Now  I  wish  to  ask  you  one  more  question,  which  I 
wish  you  all  to  answer  by  your  votes,  honestly.  It  is  this. 
Do  you  think  that  the  real  disorder  which  has  been  in  this 
class,  that  is,  the  real  cases  which  you  referred  to,  when 
you  stated  to  me,  that  you  thought  that  the  class  was  not 
in  good  order,  have  been  now  really  exposed,  so  that  I 
honestly  and  fully  understand  the  case  ?  How  many  sup- 
pose so? 

Not  a  single  hand  was  raised. 

"  How  many  of  you  think,  and  are  willing  to  avow  your 
opinion,  that  I  have  not  been  fully  informed  of  the  case?" 

A  large  proportion  held  up  their  hands. 

"Now  it  seems  the  class  pretended  to  be  willing  that  I 
should  know  all  the  affair.  You  pretended  to  be  willing 
to  tell  me  the  whole,  but  when  I  call  upon  you  for  the  in- 
formation, instead  of  telling  me  honestly,  you  attempt  to 
amuse  me  by  little  trifles,  which  in  reality  made  no  distur- 
bance, and  you  omit  the  things  which  you  know  were  the 
real  objects  of  my  inquiries.  Am  I  right  in  my  supposi- 
tion?" 

They  were  silent.  After  a  moment's  pause,  one  perhaps 
raised  her  hand,  and  began  now  to  confess  something, 
which  she  had  before  concealed. 


256  REPORTS  OF  CASES. 

The  teacher  however  interrupted  her,  by  saying, 

"  I  do  not  wish  to  have  the  confession  made  now.  I 
gave  you  all  time  to  do  that,  and  now  I  should  rather  not 
hear  any  more  about  the  disorder.  I  gave  an  opportu- 
nity to  have  it  acknowledged,  but  it  was  not  honestly  im- 
proved, and  now  I  should  rather  not  hear.  I  shall  probably 
never  know. 

"  I  wished  to  see  whether  this  class  would  be  honest, — 
really  honest,  or  whether  they  would  have  the  insincerity 
to  pretend  to  be  confessing,  when  they  were  not  doing  so 
honestly,  so  as  to  get  the  credit  of  being  frank  and  sincere, 
when  in  reality  they  are  not  so.  Now  am  I  not  compelled 
to  conclude  that  this  latter  is  the  case?" 

Such  an  example  will  make  a  deep  and  lasting  impres- 
sion. It  will  show  that  the  teacher  is  upon  his  guard;  and 
there  are  very  few,  so  hardened  in  deception,  that  they 
would  not  wish  that  they  had  been  really  sincere,  rather 
than  rest  under  such  an  imputation. 

8.  COURT.  A  pupil,  quite  young,  (says  a  teacher,) 
came  to  me  one  day  with  a  complaint  that  one  of  her  com- 
panions had  got.  her  seat.  There  had  been  some  changes 
in  the  seats  by  my  permission,  and  probably  from  some  in- 
consistency in  the  promises  which  I  had  made,  there  were 
two  claimants  for  the  same  desk.  The  complainant  came 
to  me,  and  appealed  to  my  recollection  of  the  circumstance. 

"  I  do  not  recollect  anything  about  it,"  said  I. 

"  Why!  Mr.  B."  replied  she,  with  astonishment. 

"No,"  said  I,  "you  forget  that  I  have,  every  day, 
arrangements,  almost  without  number,  of  such  a  kind  to 
make,  and  as  soon  as  I  have  made  one,  I  immediately  for- 
get all  about  it." 

"Why,  don't  you  remember  that  you  got  me  a  new 
baize?" 

"No;  I  ordered  a  dozen  new  baizes  at  that  time,  but  1 
do  not  remember  who  they  were  for." 

There  was  a  pause;  the  disappointed  complainants 
seemed  not  to  know  what  to  do. 

"  I  will  tell  you  what  to  do.  Bring  the  case  into  court 
and  I  will  try  it,  regularly," 


REPORTS  OF  CASES.  257 

"  Why,  Mr.  B. !  I  do  not  like  to  do  any  thing  like  that, 
about  it;  besides,  I  do  not  know  how  to  write  an  indict- 
ment." 

"  Oh!"  I  replied,  "  they  will  like  to  have  a  good  trial. 
It  will  make  a  new  sort  of  case.  All  our  cases  thus  far 
have  been  for  offences,  that  is  what  they  call  criminal  cases, 
and  this  will  be  only  an  examination  of  the  conflicting  claims 
of  two  individuals  to  the  same  property,  and  it  wilt  excite 
a  good  deal  of  interest.  I  think  you  had  better  bring  it 
into  court." 

She  went  slowly  and  thoughtfully  to  her  seat,  and  pre- 
sently returned  with  an  indictment, 

"Mr.  B.  is  this  right?" 

It  was  as  follows:— 

I  accuse  Miss  A.  B.  of  coming  to  take  away  my  seat,  the  one  Mr. 
B.  ffave  me. 

C  C  D 

Witnesses,  <  ,-,'  m' 
£  Jbj.  i. 

"Why, yes, —  that  will   do;  and   yet   it   is 

not  exactly  right.     You  see  this  is  what  they  call  a  civil 
case." 

"  I  don't  think  it  is  very  civil." 

"  No,  I  don't  mean  it  was  civil  to  take  your  seat.  But 
this  is  not  a  case  where  a  person  is  prosecuted  for  having 
done  anything  wrong." 

The  plaintiff  looked  a  little  perplexed,  as  if  she  could 
not  understand  how  it  could  be  otherwise  than  wrong,  for 
a  girl  to  usurp  her  seat. 

"  I  mean,  you  do  not  bring  it  into  court,  as  a  case  of 
wrong.  You  do  not  want  her  to  be  punished;  do  you?" 

"No;  I  only  want  her  to  give  me  up  my  seat;  I  don't 
want  her  to  be  punished." 

"  Well,  then,  you  see,  that  although  she  may  have  done 
wrong  to  take   your  seat,  it  is  not  in  that   point  of  view, 
that  you  bring  it  into  court.     It  is  a  question  about  the 
right  of  property,  and  the  lawyers  call  such  cases,  civil 
cases,  to  distinguish  them  from  cases  where  persons  are 
tried  for  the  purpose  of  being  punished  for  doing  wrong 
These  are  called  criminal  cases." 
22* 


258  .  REPORTS  OF  CASES. 

The  aggrieved  party  stiP  looked  perplexed.  "Well, 
Mr.  B."  she  continued,  "what  shall  I  do?  How  shall  1 
write  it?  I  cannot1  say  anything  about  civil,  in  it,  can  I?" 

A  form  was  given  her,  which  would  be  proper  for  the 
purpose,  and  the  case  was  brought  forward,  and  the  evi- 
dence on  both  sides  examined.  The  irritation  of  the  quar- 
rel was  soon  dissipated,  in  the  amusement  of  a  semi-serious 
trial,  and  both  parties  good  humoredly  acquiesced  in  the 
decision. 

9.  TEACHERS' PERSONAL  CHARACTER.  Much  has  been 
said  within  a  few  years,  by  writers  on  the  subject  of  edu- 
cation, in  this  country,  on  the  desirableness  of  raising  the 
business  of  teaching  to  the  rank  of  a  learned  profession. 
There  is  but  one  way  of  doing  this,  and  that  is  raising  the 
personal  characters  and  attainments  of  teachers  themselves. 
Whether  an  employment  is  elevated  or  otherwise  in  public 
estimation,  depends  altogether  on  the  associations  connect- 
ed with  it  in  the  public  mind;  and  these  depend  altogether 
on  the  characters  of  the  individuals  who  are  engaged  in  it. 
Franklin,  by  the  simple  fact  that  he  was  a  printer  himself, 
has  done  more  towards  giving  dignity  and  respectability 
to  the  employment  of  printing,  than  a  hundred  orations  on 
the  intrinsic  excellence  of  the  art.  In  fact  all  mechanical 
employments  have,  within  a  few  years  risen  in  rank,  in  this 
country,  not  through  the  influence  of  efforts  to  impress  the 
community  directly  with  a  sense  of  their  importance,  but 
simply  because  mechanics  themselves  have  risen  in  intel- 
lectual and  moral  character.  In  the  same  manner  the  em- 
ployment of  the  teacher  will  be  raised  most  effectually  in 
the  estimation  of  the  public,  not  by  the  individual  who  writes 
the  most  eloquent  oration  on  the  intrinsic  dignity  of  the  art, 
but  by  the  one  who  goes  forward  most  successfully  in  the 
exercise  of  it,  and  who  by  his  general  attainments,  and 
public  character,  stands  out  most  fully  to  the  view  of  the 
public,  as  a  well  informed,  liberal  minded,  and  useful  man. 

If  this  is  so,  and  it  cannot  well  be  denied,  it  furnishes 
to  every  teacher  a  strong  motive  to  exertion,  for  the  im- 
provement of  his  own  personal  character.  But  there  is  a 
stronger  motive  still,  in  the  results  which  flow  directly  to 


REPORTS    OF    CASES.  259 

himself,  from  such  efforts.  No  man  ought  to  engage  in 
any  business  which,  as  mere  business,  will  engross  all  his 
time  and  attention.  The  Creator  has  bestowed  upon  every 
one  a  mind,  upon  the  cultivation  of  which,  our  rank  among 
intelligent  beings,  our  happiness,  our  moral  and  intellect- 
ual power,  every  thing  valuable  to  us,  depend.  And  after 
all  the  cultivation  which  we  can  bestow,  in  this  life,  upon 
this  mysterious  principle,  it  will  still  be  in  embryo.  The 
progress  which  it  is  capable  of  making  is  entirely  in- 
definite. If  by  ten  years  of  cultivation,  we  can  secure  a 
certain  degree  of  knowledge  and  power,  by  ten  more,  we 
can  double,  or  more  than  double  it,  and  every  succeeding 
year  of  effort,  is  attended  with  equal  success.  There  is 
no  point  of  attainment  where  we  must  stop,  or  beyond 
which  effort  will  bring  in  a  less  valuable  return. 

Look  at  that  teacher,  and  consider  for  a  moment,  his 
condition.  He  began  to  teach  when  he  was  twenty  years 
of  age,  and  now  he  is  forty.  Between  the  years  of  fifteen 
and  twenty  he  made  a  vigorous  effort  to  acquire  such  an 
education  as  would  fit  him  for  these  duties.  He  succeed- 
ed, and  by  these  efforts  he  raised  himself  from  being  a 
mere  laborer,  receiving  for  his  daily  toil  a  mere  daily  sub- 
sistence, to  the  respectability  and  the  comforts  of  an  in- 
tellectual pursuit.  But  this  change  once  produced,  he 
stops  short  in  his  progress.  Once  seated  in  his  desk,  he 
is  satisfied,  and  for  twenty  years  he  has  been  going  through 
the  same  routine,  without  any  effort  to  advance  or  to  im- 
prove. He  does  not  reflect  that  the  same  efforts,  which 
so  essentially  altered  his  condition  and  prospects  at  twenty, 
would  have  carried  him  forward  to, higher  and  higher 
sources  of  influence  and  enjoyment,  as  long  as  he  should 
continue  them.  His  efforts  ceased  when  he  obtained  a 
situation  as  teacher,  at  forty  dollars  a  month,  and  though 
twenty  years  have  glided  away,  he  is  now  exactly  what  he 
was  then. 

There  is  probably  no  employment  whatever  which  af- 
fords so  favorable  an  opportunity  for  personal  improvement, 
— for  steady  intellectual  and  moral  progress,  as  that  of 
teaching.  There  are  two  reasons  for  this. 

First,  there  is  time  for  it      With  an  ordinary  degree  of 


260  REPORTS    OF    CASES. 

health  and  strength,  the  mind  can  be  vigorously  employed 
at  least  ten  hours  a  day.  As  much  as  this,  is  required  of 
students,  in  many  literary  institutions.  In  fact  ten  hours 
to  study,  seven  to  sleep,  and  seven  to  food,  exercise,  and 
recreation,  is  perhaps  as  good  an  arrangement  as  can  be 
made;  at  any  rate,  very  few  persons  will  suppose  that 
such  a  plan  allows  too  little  under  the  latter  head.  Now 
six  hours  is  as  much  as  is  expected  of  teachers  under  ordi- 
nary circumstances,  and  it  is  as  much  as  ought  ever  to  be 
bestowed.  For  though  he  may  labor  four  hours  out  of 
school,  in  some  new  field,  his  health  and  spirits  will  soon 
sink  under  the  burden,  if  after  his  weary  labors  during  the 
day  in  school,  he  gives  up  his  evenings  to  the  same  per- 
plexities and  cares.  And  it  is  not  necessary.  No  one 
who  knows  any  thing  of  the  nature  of  the  human  mind, 
and  who  will  reflect  a  moment  on  the  subject,  can  doubt 
that  a  man  can  make  a  better  school,  by  expending  six 
hours  labor  upon  it,  which  he  can  go  through  with,  with 
some  alacrity  and  ardor,  than  he  can  by  driving  himself 
on  to  ten.  Every  teacher  therefore,  who  is  commencing 
his  work,  should  begin  with  the  firm  determination  of  de- 
voting only  six  hours  daily  to  the  pursuit.  Make  as  good 
a  school,  and  accomplish  as  much  for  it,  as  you  can  in 
six  hours,  and  let  the  rest  go.  When  you  come  from 
your  school  room  at  night,  leave  all  your  perplexities  and 
cares  behind  you.  No  matter  what  unfinished  business 
or  unsettled  difficulties  remain.  Dismiss  them  all  till  an- 
other sun  shall  rise,  and  the  hour  of  duty  for  another  day 
shall  come.  Carry  no  school  work  home  with  you  and 
do  not  talk  of  your  work.  You  will  then  get  refresh- 
ment and  rest.  Your  mind  during  the  evening  will  be  in 
a  different  world  from  that  in  which  you  have  moved 
during  the  day.  At  first  this  will  be  difficult.  It  will  be 
hard  for  you,  unless  your  mind  is  uncommonly  well  disci- 
plined, to  dismiss  all  your  cares;  and  you  will  think,  each 
evening,  that  some  peculiar  emergency  demands  your  at- 
tention, just  at  that  lime,  and  that  as  soon  as  you  have 
passed  the  crisis,  you  will  confine  yourself  to  what  you 
admit  are  generally  reasonable  limits.  But  if  you  once 
allow  school  with  its  perplexities  and  cares  to  get  posses- 


REPORTS    OF    CASES.  261 

sion  of  the  rest  of  the  day,  it  will  keep  possession.  It  will 
intrude  itself  into  all  your  waking  thoughts,  and  trouble 
you  in  your  dreams.  You  will  lose  all  command  of  your 
powers,  and  besides  cutting  off  from  yourself  all  hope  of 
general  intellectual  progress,  you  will  in  fact  destroy  your 
success  as  a  teacher.  Exhaustion,  weariness,  and  anxiety 
will  be  your  continual  portion,  and  in  such  a  state,  no 
business  can  be  successfully  prosecuted. 

There  need  be  no  fear  that  employers  will  be  dissatis- 
fied, if  the  teacher  acts  upon  this  principle.  If  he  is  faith- 
ful and  enters  with  all  his  heart  into  the  discharge  of  his 
duties  during  six  hours,  there  will  be  something  in  the 
ardor,  and  alacrity,  and  spirit  with  which  his  duties  will  be 
performed,  which  parents  and  scholars  will  both  be  very 
glad  to  receive,  in  exchange  for  the  languid,  and  dull,  and 
heartless  toil,  in  which  the  other  method  must  sooner  or 
later  result. 

If  the  teacher  then,  will  confine  himself  to  such  a  por- 
tion of  time,  as  is,  in  fact,  all  he  can  advantageously  em- 
ploy, there  will  be  much  left  which  can  be  devoted  to  his 
own  private  employment, — more  than  is  usual  in  the  other 
employments  of  life.  In  most  of  these  other  employments, 
there  is  not  the  same  necessity  for  limiting  the  hours  which 
a  man  may  devote  to  his  business.  A  merchant,  for  exam- 
ple, may  be  employed  nearly  all  the  day,  at  his  counting- 
room,  and  so  may  a  mechanic.  A  physician  may  spend 
all  his  waking-hours  in  visiting  patients,  and  feel  little 
more  than  healthy  fatigue.  The  reason  is  that  in  all  these 
employments,  and  in  fact  in  most  of  the  employments  of 
life,  there  is  so  much  to  diversify,  so  many  little  incidents 
constantly  occurring  to  animate  and  relieve,  and  so  much 
bodily  exercise,  which  alternates  with,  and  suspends  the 
fatigues  of  the  mind,  that  the  labors  may  be  much  longer 
continued,  and  with  less  cessation,  and  yet  the  health  not 
suffer.  But  the  teacher,  while  engaged  in  his  work,  has 
his  mind  continually  on  the  stretch.  There  is  little  to 
relieve,  little  respite,  and  he  is  almost  entirely  deprived  of 
bodily  exercise.  He  must,  consequently,  limit  his  hours 
of  attending  to  his  business,  or  his  health  will  soon  sink 


262  REPORTS    OF    CASES. 

under  labors  which  Providenc^iever  intended  the  human 
mind  to  bear. 

There  is  another  circumstance  which  facilitates  the 
progress  of  the  teacher.  It  is  a  fact  that  all  this  general 
progress  has  a  direct  and  immediate  bearing  upon  his  pur- 
suits. A  lawyer  may  read  in  an  evening  an  interesting 
book  of  travels,  and  find  nothing  to  help  him  with  his  case, 
the  next  day,  in  court, — but  almost  every  fact  which  the 
teacher  thus  learns,  will  come  at  once  into  use,  in  some  of 
his  recitations  at  school.  We  do  not  mean  to  imply  by  this 
that  the  members  of  the  legal  profession  have  not  need  of 
a  great  variety  and  extent  of  knowledge:  they  doubtless 
have.  It  is  simply  in  the  directness  and  certainty,  with 
which  the  teacher's  knowledge  may  be  applied  to  his  pur- 
pose, that  the  business  of  teaching  has  the  advantage  over 
every  other  pursuit. 

This  fact  now  has  a  very  important  influence  in  encour- 
aging, and  leading  forward  the  teacher,  to  make  constant 
intellectual  progress,  for  every  step  brings  at  once  a  direct 
reward. 

10.  THE  CHESTNUT  BURR.  A  story  for  school-boys  * 
One  fine  pleasant  morning,  in  the  fall  of  the  year,  the 
master  was  walking  along  towards  school,  and  he  saw 
three  or  four  boys  under  a  large  chestnut  tree,  gathering 
chestnuts. 

One  of  the  boys  was  sitting  upon  the  ground,  trying  to 
open  some  chestnut  burrs,  which  he  had  knocked  off  from 
the  tree.  The  burrs  were  green,  and  he  was  trying  to 
open  them  by  pounding  them  with  a  stone. 

He  was  a  very  impatient  boy  and  was  scolding,  in  a 
loud  angry  tone,  against  the  burrs.  He  did  not  see,  he 
said,  what  in  the  world  chestnuts  were  made  to  grow  so 
for.  They  ought  to  grow  right  out  in  the  open  air,  like 
apples,  and  not  have  such  vile  porcupine  skins  on  them, 
— just  to  plague  the  boys.  So  saying  he  struck  with  all 
his  might  a  fine  large  burr,  crushed  it  to  pieces,  and  then' 
jumped  up,  using  at  the  same  time  profane  and  wicked 

*  Originally  written  for  a  periodical. 


REPORTS     OF    CASES.  263 

words.  As  soon  as  he  turned  round  he  saw  the  master 
standing  very  near  him.  He  felt  very  much  ashamed  and 
afraid,  and  hung  down  his  head. 

"  Roger,  "  said  the  master,  (for  this  boy's  name  was 
Roger)  "  can  you  get  me  a  chestnut  burr?  " 

Roger  looked  up  for  a  moment,  to  see  whether  the  mas- 
ter was  in  earnest,  and  then  began  to  look  around  for  a 
burr. 

A  boy  who  was  standing  near  the  tree,  with  a  red  cap 
full  of  burrs  in  his  hand,  held  out  one  of  them.  Roger 
took  the  burr  and  handed  it  to  the  master,  who  quietly 
put  it  into  his  pocket,  and  walked  away  without  saying  a 
word. 

As  soon  as  he  was  gone,  the  boy  with  the  red  cap,  said 
to  Roger,  '*  I  expected  the  master  would  have  given  you 
a  good  scolding  for  talking  so." 

"  The  master  never  scolds,"  said  another  boy,  who  was 
sitting  on  a  log  pretty  near,  with  a  green  satchel  in  his 
hand,  "  but  you  see  if  he  does  not  remember  it."  Roger 
looked  as  if  he  did  not  know  what  to  think  about  it. 

"  I  wish,"  said  he,  "  I  knew  what  he  is  going  to  do  with 
that  burr." 

That  afternoon,  when  the  lessons  had  been  all  recited, 
and  it  was  about  time  to  dismiss  the  school,  the  boys  put 
away  their  books,  and  the  master  read  a  few  verses  in  the 
Bible,  and  then  offered  a  prayer,  in  which  he  asked  God 
to  forgive  all  the  sins  which  any  of  them  had  committed 
that  day,  and  to  take  care  of  them  during  the  night.  Af- 
ter this  he  asked  the  boys  all  to  sit  down.  He  then  took 
his  handkerchief  out  of  his  pocket,  and  laid  it  on  the  desk, 
and  afterwards  he  put  his  hand  into  his  pocket  again,  and 
took  out  the  chestnut  burr,  and  all  the  boys  looked  at  it 

"  Boys,"  said  he,  "  do  you  know  what  this  is?  " 

One  of  the  boys  in  the  back  seat,  said,  in  a  half  whis- 
per, "It  is  nothing  but  a  chestnut  burr." 

"  Lucy,"  said  the  master,  to  a  bright-eyed  little  girl, 
near  him,  "  what  is  this?  " 

ec  It  is  a  chestnut  burr,  sir,"  said  she. 

ce  Do  you  know  what  it  is  for?  " 

"  I  suppose  there  are  chestnuts  in  it." 


264  REPORTS    OP    CASES. 

"  But  what  is  this  rough  prickly  covering  for?  " 

Lucy  did  not  know. 

"  Does  any  body  here  know?  "  said  the  master. 

One  of  the  boys  said  he  supposed  it  was  to  hold  the 
chestnuts  together,  and  keep  them  up  on  the  tree. 

"But  I  heard  a  boy  say,"  replied  the  master,  "that 
they  ought  not  to  be  made  to  grow  so.  The  nut  itself,  he 
thought,  ought  to  hang  alone  on  the  branches,  without  any 
prickly  covering, — just  as  apples  do." 

"  But  the  nuts  themselves  have  no  stems  to  be  fastened 
by,"  answered  the  same  boy. 

"  That  is  true,  but  I  suppose  this  boy  thought  that  God 
could  have  made  them  grow  with  stems,  and  that  this  would 
have  been  better  than  to  have  them  in  burrs." 

After  a  little  pause  the  master  said  he  would  explain  to 
them  what  the  chestnut  burr  was  for,  and  wished  them  all 
to  listen  attentively. 

"  How  much  of  the  chestnut  is  good  to  eat,  William?" 
asked  he,  looking  at  a  boy  before  him. 

"  Only  the  meat." 

"  How  long  does  it  take  the  meat  to  grow?  " 

"  All  summer  I  suppose,  it  is  growing." 

"Yes;  it  begins  early  in  the  summer  and  gradually 
swells  and  grows  until  it  has  become  of  full  size  and  is 
ripe,  in  the  fall.  Now  suppose  there  was  a  tree  out  here 
near  the  school-house,  and  the  chestnut  meats  should  grow 
upon  it  without  any  shell  or  covering,  suppose  too  that 
they  should  taste  like  good  ripe  chestnuts  at  first,  when 
they  were  very  small.  Do  you  think  they  would  be  safe?" 

William  said,  "  No!  the  boys  would  pick  and  eat  them 
before  they  had  time  to  grow." 

"  Well,  what  harm  would  there  be  in  that;  would  it  not 
be  as  well  to  have  the  chestnuts  early  in  the  summer,  as 
to  have  them  in  the  fall?  " 

William  hesitated.  Another  boy  who  sat  next  to  him 
said, 

"  There  would  not  be  so  much  meat  in  the  chestnuts,  if 
they  were  eaten  before  they  had  time  to  grow." 

"Right,"  said  the  master,  "but  would  not  the  boys 
know  this,  and  so  all  agree  to  let  the  little  chestnuts  stay, 
and  not  eat  them  while  they  were  small?  " 


REPORTS    OF    CASES  265 

William  said  he  thought  they  would  not.  If  the  chest- 
nuts were  good,  he  was  afraid  they  would  pick  them  off 
and  eat  them,  if  they  were  small. 

All  the  rest  of  the  boys  in  the  school  thought  so  too. 

"  Here  then,"  said  the  master,  "  is  one  reason  for  hav- 
ing prickles  around  the  chestnuts  when  they  are  small. 
But  then  it  is  not  necessary  to  have  all  chestnuts  guarded 
from  boys  in  this  way;  a  great  many  of  the  trees  are  in 
the  woods,  which  the  boys  do  not  see;  what  good  do  the 
burrs  do  in  these  trees?  " 

The  boys  hesitated.  Presently  the  boy  who  had  the 
green  satchel  under  the  tree  with  Roger,  who  was  sitting 
in  one  corner  of  the  room,  said, 

"  [  should  think  they  would  keep  the  squirrels  from  eat- 
ing them." 

"  And  besides,"  continued  'he  after  thinking  a  moment, 
16  I  should  suppose  if  the  meat  of  the  chestnut  had  no  cov- 
ering, the  rain  might  wet  it  and  make  it  rot,  or  the  sun 
might  dry  and  wither  it." 

"  Yes,"  said  the  master,  "  these  are  very  good  reasons 
why  the  nut  should  be  carefully  guarded.  First  the  meats 
are  packed  away  in  a  hard  brown  shell,  which  the  water 
cannot  get  through ;  this  keeps  it  dry,  and  away  from  dust, 
and  other  things  which  might  injure  it.  Then  several 
nuts  thus  protected  grow  closely  together,  inside  this  green 
prickly  covering,  which  spreads  over  them  and  guards 
them  from  the  larger  animals  and  the  boys.  Where  the 
chestnut  gets  its  full  growth  and  is  ripe,  this  covering  you 
know  splits  open,  and  the  nuts  drop  out,  and  then  any 
body  can  get  them  and  eat  them." 

The  boys  were  then  all  satisfied  that  it  was  better  that 
chestnuts  should  grow  in  burrs. 

"  But  why,"  asked  one  of  the  boys,  do  not  apples  grow 
so?  " 

"  Can  any  body  answer  that  question,"  asked  the 
master. 

The  boy  with  the  green  satchel  said  that  apples  had  a 
smooth,  tight  skin,  which  kept  out  the  wet,  but  he  did  not 
see  how  they  were  guarded  from  animals. 

The  master  said  it  was  by  their  taste.  "  They  are  hard 
23 


266  REPORTS    OF    CASES. 

and  sour  before  they  are  full  grown,  and  so  the  taste 
is  not  pleasant,  and  nobody  wants  to  eat  them, — except 
sometimes  a  few  foolish  boys,  and  these  are  punished  by 
being  made  sick.  When  the  apples  are  full  grown  they 
change  from  sour  to  sweet,  and  become  mellow;  then  they 
can  be  eaten.  Can  you  tell  me  of  any  other  fruits  which 
are  preserved  in  this  way?" 

One  boy  answered,  "  Strawberries  and  blackberries," 
and  another  said,  "  Peaches  and  pears." 

Another  boy  asked  why  the  peach-stone  was  not  out- 
side the  peach,  so  as  to  keep  it  from  being  eaten.  Bui 
the  master  said  he  would  explain  this  another  time.  Then 
he  dismissed  the  scholars,  after  asking  Roger  to  wait  until 
the  rest  had  gone,  as  he  wished  to  see  him  alone. 

11.  THE  SERIES  OF  WRITING  LESSONS,  c.*  Very 
many  pupils  soon  become  weary  of  the  dull  and  monoto- 
nous business  of  writing,  unless  some  plans  are  devised, 
to  give  interest  and  variety  to  the  exercise,  and  on  this 
account,  this  branch  of  education,  in  which  improvement 
may  be  most  rapid,  is  often  the  last  and  most  tedious  to  be 
acquired. 

A  teacher,  by  adopting  the  following  plan,  succeeded  in 
awakening  a  great  degree  of  interest  in  this  subject,  and 
consequently,  of  promoting  rapid  improvement.  The  plan 
was  this;  he  prepared,  on  a  large  sheet  of  paper,  a  series 
of  lessons  in  coarse  hand,  beginning  with  straight  lines, 
and  proceeding  to  the  elementary  parts  of  the  various  let- 
ters, and  finally  to  the  letters  themselves.  This  paper  was 
posted  up  in  a  part  of  the  room  accessible  to  all. 

"  The  writing-books  were  made  of  three  sheets  of  fool's- 
cap  paper,  folded  into  a  convenient  size,  which  was  to  be 
ruled  by  each  pupil;  for  it  was  thought  important  that  each 
one  should  learn  this  art.  Every  pupil  in  school  then, 
being  furnished  with  one  of  these  writing  books,  was  re- 
quired to  commence  this  series,  and  to  practice  each  lesson 
until  he  could  write  it  well;  then,  and  not  till  then,  he  was 
permitted  to  pass  to  the  next.  A  few  brief  directions  were 

*  The  articles,  to  which  this  letter  is  prefixed,  were  communicated 
for  this  work,  by  different  teachers,  at  the  request  of  the  author. 


REPORTS    OF    CASES. 


267 


given  under  each  lesson,  on  the  large  sheet.  For  example, 
under  the  line  of  straight  marks,  which  constituted  the  first 
lesson,  was  written  as  follows, 

Straight,  equidistant,  parallel,  smooth,  well  terminated 

These  directions  were  to  call  the  attention  of  the  pupil 
to  the  excellences  which  he  must  aim  at,  and  when  he 
supposed  he  had  secured  them,  his  book  was  to  be  pre- 
sented to  the  teacher  for  examination.  If  approved  the 
word  Passed,  or  afterwards  simply  P.  was  written  under  the 
line,  and  he  could  then  proceed  to  the  next  lesson.  Other 
requisites  were  necessary  besides  the  correct  formation  of 
the  letters,  to  enable  one  to  pass;  for  example,  the  page 
must  not  be  soiled  or  blotted,  no  paper  must  be  wasted, 
and,  in  no  case,  a  leaf  torn  out.  As  soon  as  one  line  was 
written  in  the  manner  required,  the  scholar  was  allowed 
to  pass;  in  a  majority  of  cases  however,  not  less  than  a 
page  would  be  practised,  and  in  many  instances  a  sheet 
would  be  covered,  before  one  line  could  be  produced 
which  would  be  approved. 

One  peculiar  excellency  of  this  method  was,  that  al- 
though the  whole  school  were  working  under  a  regular 
and  systematic  plan,  individuals  could  go  on  independ- 
ently; that  is,  the  progress  of  no  scholar  was  retarded  by 
that  of  his  companion;  the  one  more  advanced,  might 
easily  pass  the  earlier  lessons  in  few  days,  while  the 
others  would  require  weeks  of  practice  to  acquire  the 
same  degree  of  skill. 

During  the  writing  hour,  the  scholars  would  practice, 
each  at  the  lesson  where  he  left  off  before,  and  at  a  par- 
ticular time,  each  day,  the  books  were  brought  from  the 
regular  place  of  deposit,  and  laid  before  the  teacher  for 
examination.  Without  some  arrangement  for  an  exam- 
ination of  all  the  books  together,  the  teacher  would  be 
liable  to  interruption  at  any  time,  from  individual  ques- 
tions and  requests,  which  would  consume  much  time,  and 
benefit  only  a  few. 

When  a  page  of  writing  could  not  pass,  a  brief  remark, 
calling  the  attention  of  the  pupil  to  the  faults  which  pre- 


268  REPORTS    OF    CASES. 

vented  it,  was  sometimes  made  in  pencil  at  the  bottom  of 
the  page.  In  other  cases,  the  fault  was  of  such  a  char- 
acter as  to  require  full  and  minute  oral  directions  to  the 
pupil.  At  last,  to  facilitate  the  criticism  of  the  writing,  a 
set  of  arbitrary  marks,  indicative  of  the  various  faults,  was 
devised,  and  applied,  as  occasion  might  require,  to  the 
writing  books,  by  means  of  red  ink. 

These  marks,  which  were  very  simple  in  their  charac- 
ter, were  easily  remembered,  for  there  was  generally  some 
connexion  between  the  sign  and  the  thing  signified.  For 
example;  the  mark  denoting  that  letters  were  too  short, 
was  simply  lengthening  them  in  red  ink.  A  faulty  curve 
was  denoted,  by  making  anew  curve  over  the  old  one,  &,c. 
The  following  are  the  principal  criticisms  and  directions 
for  which  marks  were  contrived. 

Strokes  rough.  Too  tall,  or  loo  short. 

Curve  wrong.  Stems  not  straight. 

Bad  termination.  Careless  work. 

Too  slanting,  and  the  reverse.  Paper  wasted. 

Too  broad,  and  the  reverse.  Almost  well  enough  to  pass. 

Not  parallel.  Bring  your  book  to  the  teacher. 

Form  of  the  letter  bad.  Former  fault  not  corrected. 
Large  stroke  made  too  fine,  and 
the  reverse. 

A  catalogue  of  these  marks,  with  an  explanation,  was 
made  out  and  placed  where  it  was  accessible  to  all,  and  by 
means  of  them  the  books  could  be  very  easily  and  rapidly, 
but  thoroughly  criticised. 

After  the  plan  had  gone  on  for  some  time,  and  its  oper- 
ation was  fully  understood,  the  teacher  gave  up  the  busi- 
ness of  examining  the  books  into  the  hands  of  a  Commit- 
tee, appointed  by  him  from  among  the  older  and  more 
advanced  pupils.  That  the  Committee  might  be  unbias- 
sed in  their  judgment,  they  were  required  to  examine  and 
decide  upon  the  books,  without  knowing  the  names  of  the 
writers.  Each  scholar  was  indeed  required  to  place  her 
name  on  the  right  hand  upper  corner  of  every  page  of 
her  writing-book,  for  the  convenience  of  the  distributors; 
but  this  corner  was  turned  down,  when  the  book  was 
brought  in,  that  it  might  not  be  seen  by  the  Committee. 


REPORTS    OF    CASES.  269 

This  Committee  were  entrusted  with  plenary  powers, 
and  there  was  no  appeal  from  their  decision.  In  case 
they  exercised  their  authority  in  an  improper  way,  or  fail- 
ed on  any  account  to  give  satisfaction,  they  were  liable  to 
impeachment,  but  while  they  continued  in  office,  they  were 
to  be  strictly  obeyed. 

This  plan  went  on  successfully  for  three  months,  and 
with  very  little  diminution  of  interest.  The  whole  school 
went  regularly  through  the  lessons  in  coarse  hand,  and 
afterwards  through  a  similar  series  in  fine  hand,  and  im- 
provement in  this  branch  was  thought  to  be  greater  than 
at  any  former  period  in  the  same  length  of  time." 

The  same  principle  of  arranging  the  several  steps  of  an 
art  or  a  study  into  a  series  of  lessons,  and  requiring  the 
pupil  to  pass  regularly  from  one  to  the  other,  might  easily 
be  applied  to  other  studies,  and  would  afford  a  pleasant 
variety. 

12.  THE  CORRESPONDENCE.  A  master  of  a  district 
school  was  walking  through  the  room,  with  a  large  rule 
in  his  hands,  and  as  he  came  up  behind  two  small  boys, 
he  observed  that  they  were  playing  with  some  papers.  He 
struck  them  once  or  twice,  though  not  very  severely  on 
the  head,  with  the  rule  which  he  had  in  his  hand.  Tears 
started  from  the  eyes  of  one.  They  were  called  forth  by 
a  mingled  feeling  of  grief,  mortification,  and  pain.  The 
other  who  was  of  "  sterner  stuff,"  looked  steadily  into  the 
master's  face,  and  when  his  back  was  turned,  shook  his 
fist  at  him  and  laughed  in  defiance. 

Another  teacher  seeing  a  similar  case,  did  nothing. 
The  boys,  when  they  saw  him,  hastily  gathered  up  their 
playthings  and  put  them  away.  An  hour  or  two  after,  a 
little  boy  who  sat  near  the  master,  brought  them  a  note 
addressed  to  them  both.  They  opened  it  and  read  as  fol- 
lows. 

To  Edward  and  John, 

I  observed,  when  I  passed  you  to-day,  from  your  concerned  looks, 

and  your  hurried  manner  of  putting  something  into  your  desk,  that 

you  were  doing  something  that  you  knew  was  wrong.     When  you 

attempt  to   do  any  thing  whatever,  which  conscience  tells  you  is 

23* 


272  REPORTS    OF    CASES. 

"  Again,  besides  our  faults,  let  our  Committee  notice 
the  respects  in  which  we  are  doing  particularly  well,  that 
we  may  be  encouraged  to  go  on  doing  well,  or  even  to  do 
better.  If  they  think  for  example,  that  we  are  deserving 
of  credit  for  the  neatness  with  which  books  are  kept, — 
for  their  freedom  from  blots  or  scribblings,  or  dog's-ears, 
by  which  school-books  are  so  commonly  defaced,  let  them 
tell  us  so.  And  the  same  of  any  other  excellence." 

With  the  plan  as  thus  presented,  the  scholars  were  very 
much  pleased.  It  was  proposed  by  one  individual  that 
such  a  Committee  should  be  appointed  immediately,  and 
a  report  prepared  for  the  ensuing  week.  This  was  done. 
The  Committee  were  chosen  by  ballot.  The  following 
may  be  taken  as  a  specimen  of  their  reports. 

WEEKLY  REPORT. 

'  The  Committee  appointed  to  write  the  weekly  report  have  noticed 
several  things  which  they  think  wrong.  In  the  first  place  there  have 
been  a  greater  number  of  tardy  scholars,  during  the  past  week  than 
usual.  Much  of  this  tardiness  we  suppose  is  owing  to  the  interest 
felt  in  building  the  bower ;  but  we  think  this  business  ought  to  be  at- 
tended to  only  in  play  hours.  If  only  one  or  two  come  in  late  when 
we  are  reading  in  the  morning,  or  after  we  have  composed  ourselves 
to  study  at  the  close  of  the  recess,  every  scholar  must  look  up  from 
her  book, — we  do  not  say  they  ought  to  do  so,  but  only  that  they  will 
do  so.  However,  we  anticipate  an  improve rnent  in  this  respect,  as  we 
know  "  a  word  to  the  wise  is  sufficient." 

*  In  the  two  back  rows  we  are  sorry  to  say  that  we  have  noticed 
whispering.  We  know  that  this  fact  will  very  much  distress  our 
Teacher,  as  she  expects  assistance,  and  not  trouble  from  our  older 
scholars.  It  is  not  our  business  to  reprove  any  one's  misconduct, 
but  it  is  our  duty  to  mention  it,  however  disagreeable  it  may  be.  We 
think  the  younger  scholars  during  the  past  week  have  much  improved 
in  this  respect.  Only  three  cases  of  whispering  among  them  have 
occurred  to  our  knowledge. 

1  We  remember  some  remarks  made  a  few  weeks  ago,  by  our 
Teacher,  on  the  practice  of  prompting  each  other  in  the  classes.  We 
wish  she  would  repeat  them,  for  we  fear  that  by  some  they  are  for- 
gotten. In  the  class  in  Geography,  particularly  in  the  questions  on 
the  map,  we  have  noticed  sly  whispers,  which  we  suppose  were  the 
hints  of  some  kind  friend  designed  to  refresh  the  memory  of  her  less 
attentive  companion.  We  propose  that  the  following  question  be  now 
put  to  vote.  Shall  the  practice  of  prompting  in  the  classes  be  any 
longer  continued  r 


REPORTS    OF    CASES.  273 

'  We  would  propose  that  we  have  a  composition  exercise  this  week 
similar  to  the  one  on  Thursday  last.  It  was  very  interesting,  and  we 
think  all  would  be  willing  to  try  their  thinking  powers  once  more. 
We  would  propose  also  that  the  readers  of  the  compositions  should 
sit  near  the  centre  of  the  room,  as  last  week  many  fine  sentences 
escaped  the  ears  of  those  seated  in  the  remote  corners. 

'  We  were  requested  by  a  very  public-spirited  individual  to  mention 
once  more  the  want  of  three  nails,  for  bonnets  in  the  entry.  Also,  to 
say  that  the  air  from  the  broken  pane  of  glass  on  the  east  side  of  the 
room,  is  very  unpleasant  to  those  who  sit  near. 

'  Proposed  that  the  girls  who  exhibited  so  much  taste  and  ingenuity 
in  the  arrangement  of  the  festoons  of  evergreen,  and  tumblers  of  flow- 
ers around  the  Teacher's  desk,  be  now  requested  to  remove  the  faded 
roses  and  drooping  violets.  We  have  gazed  on  these  sad  emblems 
long  enough. 

c  Finally,  proposed  that  greater  care  be  taken  by  those  who  stay  at 
noon,  to  place  their  dinner  baskets  in  proper  places.  The  contents  of 
more  than  one,  were  partly  strewed  upon  the  entry  floor  this  morning/ 

If  such  a  measure  as  this  is  adopted,  it  should  not  be 
continued  uninterrupted  for  a  very  long  time.  Every 
thing  of  this  sort  should  be  occasionally  changed,  or  it 
sooner  or  later  becomes  only  a  form. 

14.  THE  SHOPPING  EXERCISE,  c.  I  have  often  when 
going  a  shopping  found  difficulty  and  trouble  in  making 
change.  I  could  never  calculate  very  readily  and  in  the 
hurry  and  perplexity  of  the  moment,  I  was  always  making 
mistakes.  I  have  heard  others  often  make  the  same  com- 
plaint, and  I  resolved  to  try  the  experiment  of  regularly 
teaching  children  to  make  change.  I  had  a  bright  little 
class  in  Arithmetic,  who  were  always  ready  to  engage  with 
interest  in  anything  new,  and  to  them  I  proposed  my  plan. 
It  was  to  be  called  the  Shopping  Exercise.  I  first  re- 
quested each  individual  to  write  something  upon  her  slate, 
which  she  would  like  to  buy,  if  she  was  going  a  shopping, 
stating  the  quantity  she  wished  and  the  price  of  it.  To 
make  the  first  lesson  as  simple  as  possible,  I  requested  no 
one  to  go  above  ten,  either  in  the  quantity  or  price.  When 
all  were  ready,  I  called  upon  some  one  to  read  what  she 
had  written.  Her  next  neighbor  was  then  requested  to 
tell  us  how  much  the  purchase  would  amount  to;  then  the 
first  one  named  a  bill,  which  she  supposed  to  be  offered  in 
payment,  and  the  second  showed  what  change  was  needed. 


274  REPORTS    OF    CASES. 

A  short  specimen  of  the  exercise  will  probably  make  it 
clearer  than  mere  description. 

Mary.  Eight  ounces  of  candy  at  seven  cents. 

Susan.  Fifty-six  cents. 

Mary.  One  dollar. 

Susan.  Forty-four  cents. 


Nine  yards  of  lace  at  eight  cents. 
Anna.      Seventy-two  cents. 
Susan.     Two  dollars. 
Anna.     One  dollar  and  twenty-eight  cents. 

Anna.     Three  pieces  of  tape  at  five  cents* 

Jane.      Fifteen  cents. 

Anna.     Three  dollars. 

Jane.      Eighty-five  cents 

Several  voices.     Wrong. 

Jane.      Two  dollars  and  eighty-five  cents. 

Jane.       Six  pictures  at  eight  cents. 
Sarah.     Forty-two  cents. 
Several  voices.     Wrong. 
Sarah.     Forty-eight  cents. 
Jane.       One  dollar. 
Sarah.     Sixty-two  cents. 
Several  voices.     Wrong. 
Sarah.     Fifty-two  cents. 

It  will  be  perceived  that  the  same  individual  who  names 
the  article  and  the  price,  names  also  the  bill  which  she 
would  give  in  payment,  and  the  one  who  sits  next  her, 
who  calculated  the  amount,  calculated  also  the  change  to 
be  returned.  She  then  proposed  her  example  to  the  one 
next  in  the  line,  with  whom  the  same  course  was  pursued, 
and  thus  it  passed  down  the  class. 

The  exercise  went  on  for  some  time  in  this  way,  till  the 
pupils  had  become  so  familiar  with  it,  that  I  thought  it 
best  to  allow  them  to  take  higher  numbers.  They  were 
always  interested  in  it,  and  made  great  improvement  in 
a  short  time,  and  I,  myself,  derived  great  advantage  from 
listening  to  them. 

There  is  one  more  circumstance,  I  will  add,  which  may 
contribute  to  the  interest  of  this  account.  While  the  class 
were  confined  in  what  they  purchased,  to  the  number  ten, 


REPORTS   OF    CASES.  275 

they  were  sometimes  inclined  to  turn  the  exercise  into  a 
frolic.  The  variety  of  articles  which  they  could  find  cost- 
ing less  than  ten  cents  was  so  small,  that  for  the  sake  of 
getting  something  new,  they  would  propose  examples  really 
ludicrous,  such  as  these.  Three  meeting-houses  at  two 
cents.  Four  pianos  at  nine  cents.  But  I  soon  found  that 
if  I  allowed  this  at  all,  their  attention  was  diverted  from  the 
main  object,  and  occupied  in  seeking  the  most  diverting 
and  curious  examples. 

15.  ARTIFICES  IN  RECITATIONS,  c.  The  teacher  of 
a  small,  newly  established  school,  had  all  of  his  scholars 
classed  together  in  some  of  their  studies.  At  recitations 
he  usually  sat  in  the  middle  of  the  room,  while  the  schol- 
ars occupied  the  usual  places  at  their  desks,  which  were 
arranged  around  the  sides.  In  the  recitation  in  Rhetpric, 
the  teacher,  after  a  time,  observed  that  one  or  two  of  the 
class  seldom  answered  appropriately  the  questions  which 
came  to  them;  but  yet,  were  always  ready  with  some  kind 
of  answer — generally  an  exact  quotation  of  the  words  of 
the  book.  Upon  noticing  these  individuals  more  particu- 
larly, he  was  convinced  that  their  books  were  open  before 
them,  in  some  concealed  situation.  Another  practice  not 
uncommon  in  the  class,  was  that  of  prompting  each  other, 
either  by  whispers  or  writing.  The  teacher  took  no 
notice  publicly  of  these  practices,  for  some  time,  until  at 
the  close  of  an  uncommonly  good  recitation,  he  remarked, 
"Well,  I  think  we  have  had  a  fine  recitation  to-day.  It 
is  one  of  the  pleasantest  things  I  ever  do,  to  hear  a  lesson 
that  is  learned  as  well  as  this.  Do  you  think  it  would  be 
possible  for  us  to  have  as  good  an  exercise  every  day?  " 
"  Yes  sir,"  answered  several  faintly.  "  Do  you  think  it 
would  be  reasonable  for  me  to  expect  of  every  member  of 
the  class,  that  she  should  always  be  able  to  recite  all  her 
lessons,  without  ever  missing  a  single  question?"  "No 
sir,"  answered  all.  "I  do  not  expect  it,"  said  the  teacher. 
"  All  I  wish  is,  that  each  of  you  should  be  faithful  in  your 
efforts  to  prepare  your  lessons.  I  wish  you  to  study  from  a 
sense  of  duty,  and  for  the  sake  of  your  own  improvement. 
You  know  I  do  not  punish  you  for  failures.  I  have  no 


276  REPORTS    OP    CASES. 

going  up  or  down,  no  system  of  marking.  Your  only  reward 
when  you  have  made  faithful  preparation  for  a  recitation, 
is  the  feeling  of  satisfaction  which  you  will  always  expe- 
rience ;  and  when  you  have  been  negligent,  your  only  pun- 
ishment is  a  sort  of  uneasy  feeling  of  self-reproach.  I  do 
not  expect  you  all  to  be  invariably  prepared  with  every 
question  of  your  lessons.  Sometimes  you  will  be  unavoid- 
ably prevented  from  studying  them,  and  at  other  times, 
when  you  have  studied  them  very  carefully,  you  may  have 
forgotten,  or  you  may  fail  from  some  misapprehension  of 
the  meaning  in  some  cases.  Do  not,  in  such  a  case,  feel 
troubled  because  you  may  not  have  appeared  as  well  as 
some  individual  who  has  not  been  half  as  faithful  as  your- 
self. If  you  have  done  your  duty  that  is  enough.  On  the 
other  hand,  you  ought  to  feel  no  better  satisfied  with  your- 
selves when  your  lesson  has  not  been  studied  well,  be- 
cause you  may  have  happened  to  know  the  parts  which 
came  to  you.  Have  I  done  well  should  always  be  the 
question,  not  have  I  managed  to  appear  well? 

"  I  will  say  a  word  here,"  continued  the  teacher,  "  upon 
a  practice,  which  I  have  known  to  be  very  common  in  some 
schools,  and  which  I  have  been  sorry  to  notice  occasion- 
ally in  this.  I  mean  that  of  prompting,  or  helping  each 
other  along  in  some  way,  at  recitations.  Now,  where  a 
severe  punishment  is  the  consequence  of  a  failure,  there 
might  seem  to  be  some  reasonableness  in  helping  your 
companions  out  of  difficulty,  though  even  then,  such  tricks 
are  departures  from  honorable  dealing.  But  especially 
when  there  is  no  purpose  to  be  served  but  that  of  ap- 
pearing to  know  more  than  you  do,  it  certainly  must  be 
considered  a  very  mean  kind  of  artifice.  I  think  I  have 
sometimes  observed  an  individual  to  be  prompted,  where 
evidently  the  assistance  was  not  desired,  and  even  where 
it  was  not  needed.  To  whisper  to  an  individual  the  an- 
swer to  a  question,  is  sometimes  to  pay  her  rather  a  poor 
compliment,  at  least;  for  it  is  the  same  as  saying,  *  I  am  a 
better  scholar  than  you  are;  let  me  help  you  along  a  little.' 

"  Let  us  then  hereafter,  have  only  fair,  open,  honest 
dealings  with  each  other,  no  attempts  to  appear  to  advan- 
tage by  little  artful  manceuvering; — no  prompting, — no 


REPORTS   OF   CASES.  277 

peeping  into  books.  Be  faithful  and  conscientious,  and 
then  banish  anxiety  for  your  success.  Do  you  not  think 
you  shall  find  this  the  pleasantest  course?  " — "  Yes  sir," 
answered  every  scholar.  "Are  you  willing  to  pledge 
yourselves  to  adopt  it?  "  "  Yes  sir."  "  Those  who  are, 
may  raise  their  hands,33  said  the  teacher.  Every  hand 
was  raised;  and  the  pledge,  there  was  evidence  to  believe, 
was  honorably  sustained. 

16.  KEEPING  RESOLUTIONS.  The  following  are  notes 
of  a  familiar  lecture  on  this  subject,  given  by  a  teacher  at 
some  general  exercise  in  the  school.  The  practice  of 
thus  reducing  to  writing  what  the  teacher  may  say  on  such 
subjects  will  be  attended  with  excellent  effects. 

This  is  a  subject  upon  which  young  persons  find  much  difficulty. 
The  question  is  asked  a  thousand  times,  "  How  shall  I  ever  learn  to 
keep  my  resolutions?  "  Perhaps,  the  great  cause  of  your  failures  is 
this.  You  are  not  sufficiently  definite  in  forming  your  purposes.  You 
will  resolve  to  do  a  thing,  without  knowing  with  certainty  whether  it 
is  even  possible  to  do  it.  Again,  you  make  resolutions  which  are  to 
run  on  indefinitely,  so  that  of  course,  they  can  never  be  fully  kept. 
For  instance,  one  of  you  will  resolve  to  rise  earlier  in  the  morning. 
You  fix  upon  no  definite  hour,  on  any  definite  number  of  mornings, 
only  you  are  going  to  "  rise.earlier"  Morning  comes  arid  finds  you 
sleepy  and  disinclined  to  rise.  You  remember  your  resolution  of  ris- 
ing earlier.  "  But  then  it  is  very  early,"  you  say.  You  resolved  to 
rise  earlier,  but  you  didn't  resolve  to  rise  just  then.  And  this,  it  may 
be,  is  the  last  of  your  resolution.  Or,  perhaps  you  are,  for  a  few  morn- 
ings, a  little  earlier ;  but  then  at  the  end  of  a  week  or  fortnight,  you 
do  not  know  exactly,  whether  your  resolution  has  been  broken  or 
kept,  for,  you  had  not  decided  whether  to  rise  earlier  for  ten  days,  or 
for  ten  years. 

In  the  same  vague  and  general  manner,  a  person  will  resolve  to  be 
more  studious,  or  more  diligent.  In  the  case  of  an  individual,  of  a 
mature  and  well-disciplined  mind,  of  acquired  firmness  of  character, 
such  a  resolution  might  have  effect.  The  individual  will  really  de- 
vote more  time  and  attention  to  his  pursuits.  But,  for  one  of  you  to 
make  such  a  resolution,  would  do  no  sort  of  good.  It  would  only  be 
a  source  of  trouble  and  disquiet.  You  perceive  there  is  nothing  defi- 
nite,— nothing  fixed  about  it.  You  have  not  decided  what  amount 
of  additional  time  or  attention  to  give  to  your  studies,  or,  when  you 
will  begin,  or  when  you  will  end.  There  is  no  one  time  when  you 
will  feel  that  you  are  breaking  your  resolution,  because  there  were  no 
particular  times  when  you  were  to  study  more.  You  waste  one  oppor- 
tunity and  another,  and  then,  with  a  feeling  of  discouragement,  and 

24 


278  REPORTS    OF    CASES. 

self-reproach,  conclude  to  abandon  your  resolution.  "  Oh  !  it  does  no 
good  to  make  resolutions,"  you  say  ;  "  I  never  shall  keep  them." 

Now,  if  you  would  have  the  business  of  making  resolutions  a 
pleasant  and  interesting,  instead  of  a  discouraging,  disquieting  one, 
you  must  proceed  in  a  different  manner.  Be  definite  and  distinct  in 
your  plan, — decide  exactly  what  you  will  do,  and  how  you  will  do  it 
— when  you  will  begin  and  when  you  will  end.  Instead  of  resolving 
to  "  rise  earlier,"  resolve  to  rise  at  the  ringing  of  the  sunrise  bells,  or 
at  some  other  definite  time.  Resolve  to  try  this,  as  an  experiment, 
for  one  morning,  or  for  one  week,  or  fortnight.  Decide  positively,  if 
you  decide  at  all,  and  then,  rise  when  the  time  comes,  sleepy  or  not 
sleepy.  Do  not  stop  to  repent  of  your  resolution,  or  to  consider  the 
wisdom  or  folly  of  it,  when  the  time  for  acting  under  it,  has  once 
arrived. 

In  all  cases,  little  and  great,  make  this  a  principle, —  to  consider 
well  before  you  begin  to  act,  but  after  you  have  begun  to  act,  never 
stop  to  consider.  Resolve  as  deliberately  as  you  please  ;  but  be  sure 
to  keep  your  resolution,  whether  a  wise  one  or  an  unwise  one,  after 
it  is  once  made.  Never  allow  yourself  to  re-consider  the  question 
of  getting  up,  after  the  morning  has  come,  except  it  be,  for  some 
unforeseen  circumstance.  Get  up  for  that  time,  and  be  more  careful 
how  you  make  resolutions  again. 

17.  TOPICS,  c.  The  plan  of  the  Topic  Exercise,  as 
we  called  it,  is  this.  Six  or  seven  topics  are  given  out, 
information  upon  which  is  to  be  obtained  from  any  source, 
and  communicated  verbally  before  the  whole  school,  or 
sometimes  before  a  class  formed  for  this  purpose,  the  next 
day.  The  subjects  are  propose'd  both  by  teacher  and 
scholars,  and  if  approved,  adopted.  The  exercise  is  in- 
tended to  be  voluntary,  but  ought  to  be  managed  in  a  way 
sufficiently  interesting  to  induce  all  to  join. 

At  the  commencement  of  the  exercise  the  teacher  calls 
upon  all  who  have  any  information  in  regard  to  the  topic 
assigned,  suppose,  for  example  it  is  Alabaster,  to  rise. 
Perhaps  twenty  individuals  out  of  forty  rise.  The  teacher 
may,  perhaps,  say  to  those  in  their  seats, 

"  Do  you  not  know  any  thing  of  this  subject?  Have  you 
neither  seen  nor  heard  of  Alabaster,  arid  had  no  means  of 
ascertaining  any  thing  in  regard  to  it?  If  you  have,  you 
ought  to  rise.  It  is  not  necessary  that  you  should  state  a 
fact  altogether  new  and  unheard  of,  but  if  you  tell  me  its 
color,  or  some  of  the  uses  to  which  it  is  applied,  you  will 
be  complying  with  my  request." 

After  these  remarks,  perhaps  a  few  more  rise,  and  pos- 


REPORTS   OP    CASES     V,  279 

sibly  the  whole  school.  Individuals  are"then  called  upon 
at  random,  each  to  state  only  one  particular  in  regard  to 
the  topic  in  question.  This  arrangement  -is  made  so  as  to 
give  all  an  opportunity  to  speak.  If  any  scholar,  after  hav- 
ing mentioned  one  fact,  has  something  still  farther  to  com- 
municate, she  remains  standing  till  called  upon  again.  As 
soon  as  an  individual  has  exhausted  her  stock  of  informa- 
tion, or  if  the  facts  that  she  intended  to  mention  are  stated 
by  another,  she  takes  her  seat. 

The  topics  at  first  most  usually  selected,  are  the  common 
objects  by  which  we  are  surrounded;  for  example,  glass, 
iron,  mahogany,  &c.  The  list  will  gradually  extend  itself, 
until  it  will  embrace  a  large  number  of  subjects. 

The  object  of  this  exercise  is  to  induce  pupils  to  seek 
for  general  information  in  an  easy  and  pleasant  manner,  as 
by  the  perusal  of  books,  newspapers,  periodicals,  and  con- 
versation with  friends.  It  induces  care  and  attention  in 
reading,  and  discrimination  in  selecting  the  most  useful 
and  important  facts  from  the  mass  of  information.  As 
individuals  are  called  upon,  also,  to  express  their  ideas 
verbally,  they  soon  acquire  by  practice,  the  power  of  ex- 
pressing their  ideas  with  clearness  and  force,  and  commu- 
nicating with  ease  and  confidence  the  knowledge  they 
possess. 

18.  Music,  c.  The  girls  of  our  school  often  amused 
themselves  in  recess  by  collecting  into  little  groups  for 
singing.  As  there  seemed  to  be  a  sufficient  power  of 
voice  and  a  respectable  number  who  were  willing  to  join 
in  the  performance,  it  was  proposed  one  day,  that  singing 
should  be  introduced  as  a  part  of  the  devotional  exercises 
of  the  school. 

The  first  attempt  nearly  resulted  in  a  failure;  only  a 
few  trembling  voices  succeeded  in  singing  Old  Hundred, 
to  the  words,  "  Be  thou,"  &c.  On  the  second  day,  Peter- 
borough was  sung  with  much  greater  confidence  on  the 
part  of  the  increased  number  of  singers.  The  experiment 
was  tried  with  greater  and  greater  success  for  several 
days,  when  the  Teacher  proposed  that  a  systematic  plan 
should  be  formed,  by  which  there  might  be  singing  regu- 


280  REPORTS  OF   CASES. 

larly  at  the  close  of  school.  It  was  then  proposed,  that 
a  number  of  Singing  books  be  obtained,  and  one  of  the 
scholars,  who  was  well  acquainted  with  common  tunes,  be 
appointed  as  chorister.  Her  duty  should  be,  to  decide 
what  particular  tune  may  be  sung  each  day,  inform  the 
Teacher  of  the  metre  of  the  hymn,  and  take  the  lead  in  the 
exercise.  This  plan  being  approved  of  by  the  scholars, 
was  adopted,  and  put  into  immediate  execution.  Several 
brought  copies  of  the  Sabbath  School  Hymn  Book  which 
they  had  in  their  possession,  and  the  plan  succeeded  be- 
yond all  expectation.  The  greatest  difficulty  in  the  way 
was  to  get  some  one  to  lead.  The  chorister,  however, 
was  somewhat  relieved  from  the  embarrassment  which 
she  would  naturally  feel  in  making  a  beginning,  by  the 
appointment  of  one  or  two  individuals  with  herself,  who 
were  to  act  as  her  assistants.  These  constituted  the  lead- 
ing Committee,  or  as  it  was  afterwards  termed,  Singing 
Committee. 

Singing  now  became  a  regular  and  interesting  exercise 
of  the  school,  and  the  Committee  succeeded  in  managing 
the  business  themselves. 

19.  TABU.  c.  An  article  was  one  day  read  in  a  school 
relating  to  the  "  Tabu"  of  the  Sandwich  Islanders.  Tabu 
is  a  term  with  them  which  signifies  consecrated, — not  to 
be  touched — to  be  let  alone — not  to  be  violated.  Thus 
according  to  their  religious  observances,  a  certain  day  will 
be  proclaimed  Tabu,  that  is,  one  upon  which  there  is  to 
be  no  work,  or  no  going  out. 

A  few  days  after  this  article  was  read,  the  scholars  ob- 
served one  morning,  a  flower  stuck  up  in  a  conspicuous 
place  against  the  wall,  with  the  word  TABU  in  large  char- 
acters above  it.  This  excited  considerable  curiosity.  The 
teacher  informed  them,  in  explanation,  that  the  flower  was 
a  very  rare  and  beautiful  specimen  brought  by  one  of  the 
scholars,  which  he  wished  all  to  examine.  "  You  would 
naturally  feel  a  disposition  to  examine  it  by  the  touch;  " 
said  he,  "but  you  will  all  see,  that  by  the  time  it  was 
touched  by  sixty  individuals,  it  would  be  likely  to  be  in- 
jured, if  not  destroyed.  So  I  concluded  to  label  it,  Tabu 


REPORTS    OF    CASES.  281 

And  it  has  occurred  to  me  that  this  will  be  a  convenient 
mode  of  apprising  you  generally,  that  any  article  had  bet- 
ter not  be  handled.  You  know  we  sometimes  have  some 
apparatus  exposed,  which  would  be  liable  to  injury  from 
disturbance,  where  there  are  so  many  persons  to  touch  it. 
I  shall  in  such  a  case,  just  mention  that  an  article  is  Tabu, 
and  you  will  understand  that  it  is  not  only  not  to  be  in- 
jured, but  not  even  touched." 

A  little  delicate  management  of  this  sort  will  often  have 
more  influence  over  young  persons,  than  the  most  vehe- 
ment scolding,  or  the  most  watchful  and  jealous  precau- 
tions. The  Tabu  was  always  most  scrupulously  regarded, 
after  this,  whenever  employed. 

20.  MENTAL  ANALYSIS.  Scene;  a  class  in  Arithmetic 
at  recitation.  The  teacher  gives  them  an  example  in  addi- 
tion, requesting  them  when  they  have  performed  it  to  rise. 
Some  finish  it  very  soon,  others  are  very  slow  in  accom- 
plishing the  work. 

*  "  I  should  like  to  ascertain,"  says  the  teacher,  "how 
great  is  the  difference  of  rapidity,  with  which  different 
members  of  the  class  work  in  addition.  I  will  give  you 
another  example,  and  then  notice  by  my  watch,  the  short- 
est and  longest  time  required  to  do  it." 

The  result  of  the  experiment  was,  that  some  members 
of  the  class  were  two  or  three  times  as  long  in  doing  it,  as 
others. 

"  Perhaps  you  think,"  said  the  teacher,  "  that  this  dif- 
ference is  altogether  owing  to  difference  of  skill,  but  it  is 
not.  It  is  mainly  owing  to  the  different  methods  adopted 
by  various  individuals.  I  am  going  to  describe  some  of 
these,  and  as  I  describe  them,  I  wish  you  would  notice 
them  carefully,  and  tell  me  which  you  practice. 

There  are  then  three  modes  of  adding  up  a  column  of 
figures,  which  I  shall  describe. 

1.  "  I  shall  call  the  first  counting.  You  take  the  first 
figure,  and  then  add  the  next  to  it,  by  counting  up  regu- 
larly. There  are  three  distinct  ways  of  doing  this. 

(a.)  Counting  by  your  fingers.    ("  Yes  sir."  )  You  take 
the  first  figure, — suppose  it  is  seven,  and  the  one  above 
24* 


282  REPORTS  OF  CASES. 

it,  eight.  Now  you  recollect  that  to  add  eight,  you  must 
count  all  the  fingers  of  one  hand,  and  all  but  two  again. 
So  you  say  seven — eight,  nine,  ten,  eleven,  twelve,  thir- 
teen, fourteen,  fifteen." 

"  Yes  sir,"  "  Yes  sir,"  said  the  scholars. 

(b.)  "  The  next  mode  of  counting  is  to  do  it  mentally, 
without  using  your  fingers  at  all,  but  as  it  is  necessary  for 
you  to  have  some  plan  to  secure  your  adding  the  right 
number,  you  divide  the  units  into  sets  of  two  each.  Thus 
you  remember  that  eight  consists  of  four  twos,  and  you 
accordingly  say,  when  adding  eight  to  seven,  "  Seven; — 
eight,  nine; — ten,  eleven; — twelve,  thirteen;"  &c. 

(c.)  The  third  mode  is,  to  add  by  threes,  in  the  same 
way.  You  recollect  that  eight  consists  of  two  threes  and 
a  two;  so  you  say,  seven; — eight,  nine,  ten; — eleven, 
twelve,  thirteen; — fourteen,  fifteen." 

The  teacher  here  stops  to  ascertain  how  many  of  the 
class  are  accustomed  to  add  in  either  of  these  modes.  It 
is  a  majority. 

2.  "  The  next  general  method  is  calculating.  That  is, 
you  do  not  unite  one  number  to  another  by  the  dull  and 
tedious  method  of  applying  the  units,  one  by  one,  as  in  the 
ways  described  under  the  preceding  head,  but  you  come  to 
a  result  more  rapidly  by  some  mode  of  calculating.  These 
modes  are  several. 

(a.)  Doubling  a  number,  and  then  adding  or  subtracting 
as  the  case  may  require.  For  instance  in  the  example 
already  specified;  in  order  to  add  seven  and  eight,  you 
say,  "Twice  seven  are  fourteen  and  one  are  fifteen;" 
("Yes  sir,"  "  Yes  sir,")  or  "  Twice  eight  are  sixteen,  and 
taking  one  off,  leaves  fifteen.  ("Yes  sir.") 

(b.)  Another  way  of  calculating  is  to  skip  about  the 
column,  adding  those  numbers  which  you  can  do  most 
easily,  and  then  bringing  in  the  rest  as  you  best  can. 
Thus,  if  you  see  three  eights  in  one  column,  you  say  three 
times  eight  are  twenty-four,  and  then  you  try  to  bring  in 
the  other  numbers.  Often  in  such  cases,  you  forget  what 
you  have  added  and  what  you  have  not,  and  get  confused, 
("Yes  sir,")  or  you  omit  something  in  your  work,  and 
consequently  it  is  incorrect 


REPORTS  OP  CASES  28$ 

(c.)  If  nines  occur,  you  sometimes  add  ten,  and  then 
take  off  one,  for  it  is  very  easy  to  add  ten. 

(d.)  Another  method  of  calculating,  which  is,  however, 
not  very  common,  is  this.  To  take  our  old  case,  adding 
eight  to  seven,  you  take  as  much  from  the  eight  to  add 
to  the  seven  as  will  be  sufficient  to  make  ten,  and  then  it 
will  be  easy  to  add  the  rest.  Thus,  you  think  in  a  minute, 
that  three  from  the  eight  will  make  the  seven  a  ten,  and 
then  there  will  be  five  more  to  add,  which  will  make 
fifteen.  If  the  next  number  was  seven,  you  would  say 
five  of  it  will  make  twenty,  and  then  there  will  be  two 
left,  which  will  make  twenty-two.  This  mode,  though  it 
may  seem  more  intricate  than  any  of  the  others,  is  in  fact 
more  rapid  than  any  of  them,  when  one  is  little  accustom- 
ed to  it. 

These  are  the  four  principal  modes  of  calculating  which 
occur  to  me.  Pupils  do  not  generally  practice  any  one  of 
them  exclusively,  but  occasionally  resort  to  each,  accord- 
ing to  the  circumstances  of  the  particular  case." 

The  teacher  here  stopped  to  inquire  how  many  of  the 
class  were  accustomed  to  add  by  calculating  in  either  of 
these  ways,  or  in  any  simpler  ways. 

3.  f(  There  is  one  more  mode  which  I  shall  describe: 
it  is  by  Memory.  Before  I  explain  this  mode  I  wish  to  ask 
you  some  questions  which  I  should  like  to  have  you  an- 
swer as  quick  as  you  can. 

How  much  is  four  times  five  ? — Four  and  five  ? 

How  much  is  seven  times  nine  ? — Seven  and  nine. 

Eight  times  six? — Eight  and  six? 

Nine  times  seven? — Nine  and  seven?" 

After  asking  a  few  questions  of  this  kind,  it  was  per- 
ceived that  the  pupils  could  tell  much  more  readily  what 
was  the  result  when  the  numbers  were  to  be  multiplied, 
then  when  they  were  to  be  added. 

"  The  reason  is,"  said  the  teacher,  "  because  you  com- 
mitted the  multiplication  table  to  memory,  and  have  not 
committed  the  addition  table.  Now  many  persons  have 
committed  the  addition  table,  so  that  it  is  perfectly  familiar 
to  them,  and  when  they  see  any  two  numbers,  the  amount 
which  is  produced  when  they  are  added  together  comes  to 


284  REPORTS  OP  CASES 

mind  in  an  instant.  Adding  in  this  way  is  the  last  of  the 
three  modes  I  was  to  describe. 

Now  of  these  three  methods,  the  last  is  undoubtedly  the 
best.  If  you  once  commit  the  addition  table  thoroughly, 
you  have  it  fixed  for  life;  whereas  if  you  do  not,  you  have 
to  make  the  calculation  over  again  every  time,  and  thus 
lose  a  vast  amount  of  labor.  I  have  no  doubt  that  there 
are  some  in  this  class  who  are  in  the  habit  of  counting,  who 
have  ascertained  that  seven  and  eight  for  instance/ make 
fifteen,  by  counting  up  from  seven  to  fifteen,  hundreds  of 
times.  Now  how  much  better  it  would  be,  to  spend  a  little 
time  in  fixing  the  fact  in  the  mind  once  for  all,  and  then 

when  you  come  to  the  case,  seven  and  eight  are say 

at  once  "  Fifteen," — instead  of  mumbling  over  and  over 
again,  hundreds  of  times,  "  Seven,  eight,  nine,  ten,  eleven, 
twelve,  thirteen,  fourteen,  fifteen." 

The  reason  then,  that  some  of  the  class  add  so  slowly, 
is  not  probably  because  they  want  skill  and  rapidity  of  ex- 
ecution, but  because  they  work  to  a  great  disadvantage, 
by  working  in  the  wrong  way.  1  have  often  been  surpris- 
ed at  the  dexterity  and  speed  with  which  some  scholars 
can  count  with  their  fingers,  when  adding,  and  yet  they 
could  not  get  through  the  sum  very  quick — at  least  they 
would  have  done  it  in  half  the  time,  if  the  same  effort  had 
been  made  in  travelling  on  a  shorter  road.  We  will  there- 
fore study  the  addition  table  now,  in  the  class,  before  we 
go  on  any  farther." 

The  foregoing  narratives,  it  is  hoped,  may  induce  some 
of  the  readers  of  this  book  to  keep  journals  of  their  own 
experiments,  and  of  the  incidents  which  may,  from  time 
to  time  come  under  their  notice,  illustrating  the  principles 
of  education,  or  simply  the  characteristics  and  tendencies 
of  the  youthful  mind.  The  business  of  teaching  will  excite 
interest  and  afford  pleasure,  just  in  proportion  to  the  degree 
in  which  it  is  conducted  by  operations  of  mind  upon  mind, 
and  the  means  of  making  it  most  fully  so,  are,  careful  prac- 
tice, based  upon,  and  regulated  by,  the  results  of  careful 
observation.  Every  teacher  then  should  make  observations 
and  experiments  upon  mind  a  part  of  his  daily  duty,  and 


REPORTS  OF  CASES.  285 

nothing  will  more  facilitate  this,  than  keeping  a  record  of 
results.  There  can  be  no  opportunity  for  studying  human 
nature,  more  favorable  than  the  teacher  enjoys.  The  ma- 
terials are  all  before  him;  his  very  business,  from  day  to 
day,  brings  him  to  act  directly  upon  them;  and  the  study 
of  the  powers  and  tendencies  of  the  human  mind  is  not 
only  the  most  interesting  and  the  noblest  that  can  engage 
human  attention,  but  every  step  of  progress  he  makes  in 
it,  imparts  an  interest  and  charm,  to  what  would  otherwise 
be  a  weary  toil.  It  at  once  relieves  his  labors,  while  it 
doubles  their  efficiency  and  success. 


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